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Dimensions: 50 by 61cm., 19 3/4 by 24in.
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Provenance: Private Collection, Europe (possibly acquired directly from the artist)
Acquired from the above by the present owner
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Notes: To be included in the forthcoming Catalogue raisonné de l'œuvre peint de Amédée Ozenfant being prepared by Françoise Ducros et Pierre Guénégan.
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTION, EUROPE
Painted circa 1926, the present work represents the pinnacle of Purism, the short-lived but stunningly elegant movement founded by Amédée Ozenfant and Charles Édouard Jeanerret (later known as Le Corbusier) in 1918. As the title suggests, Après le cubisme was a manifesto written to extend the possibilities of Cubism away from the 'decorative' manner of analytical Cubism into a more mathematical, perfectionist approach. In the place of spontaneity and artistic error came a carefully planned command of composition, colour and form.
From 1925 to 1928 Ozenfant constructed more natural, harmonious compositions, as shown in the present work. There is a classical aspect to his mid-late 1920s painting that evokes a controlled, architectural weighing of form. Le Pichet Blanc is testament to Ozenfant at his peak: the line of the jug as a central motif is immaculately balanced as centrepiece, yet the whole work perfectly harmonises both colour and composition. The carefully constructed paint surface and intricate finish to the work are other aspects that make this painting such a wonderful example of Purism.