AANFM RCA
1925 - 2002
Canadian
Lifestream
oil on canvas
signed and dated 1959
14 1/8 x 18 1/4 in, 35.9 x 46.4 cm
Estimate: $20,000 - $25,000 CAD
Sold for: $37,250
Preview at: Heffel Toronto – 13 Hazelton Ave
PROVENANCE
Acquired directly from the Artist by Mireille and Bernard Lagacé, Montreal, circa 1960
LITERATURE
Matthew Teitelbaum, Paterson Ewen: The Montreal Years, Mendel Art Gallery, 1987, page 23
Painted in 1959, this work is part of Paterson Ewen’s Lifestream series, in which he developed his personal voice. A slender white horizontal band bisects mustard quadrangles, which add rhythm to the composition. The inner drama of the piece revolves around the flattened bands of colour, stretched across the canvas and demarcated by bold black outlines. This dramatic focus effectively emphasizes the horizontality of the work, suggesting a landscape. Art historian Matthew Teitelbaum wrote that with “a clear spatial organization which underlined the influence of the Plasticiens, and an earthy richness of color which recalled the Automatistes, the Lifestream works suggested a delicate traverse across space and through time.” Ewen’s lush fields of mustard, white, cobalt and teal, applied with great energy and in wide swathes of the brush, display his gestural prowess. With its strongly rhythmic composition and dynamic surface, this piece is a quintessential example from one of Ewen’s important series of works.
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