Sold for: $61,250

PROVENANCE
Estate of H. Marc Moyens
The House Sale, Christie's New York, March 8, 2007, lot 143
Private Collection, Toronto

Jean McEwen’s journey through abstraction overlapped with those of his fellow signatories of the Refus Global – Paul-Emile Borduas’ influential 1948 manifesto – while remaining undeniably distinctive. For example, his watercolours of the early 1950s aligned with those of Borduas and of Jean-Paul Riopelle, but with McEwen more quickly favouring a flattened, all-over “field” approach, rather than a “figure/ground” style with its accompanying illusion of depth. After moving through a monochromatic period which included his Jardin de givre (Garden of Frost) works, the artist then began his deep and profound exploration of colour. Typically comprised of organic or geometric forms alternately categorized as “margins,” “cells” or “cuneiforms,” it is this rich and luminous approach that became his hallmark. Gently intimate and tactile, Midi-Temps-Roses is a beautiful example, and speaks to the breadth and complexity of McEwen’s contributions to art history.

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