ANDRÉ LANSKOY (FRENCH/RUSSIAN, 1902-1976)
Les Preoccupation d'un Grillon
signed 'LANSKOY' (upper left); titled and dated 'Les/preoccupation/d'un/grillon/59' (verso)
oil on canvas
60.5 x 73.2 cm. (23 7/8 x 28 3/4 in.)

Provenance
With Galerie Louis Carré & Co, Paris
With Svensk-Franska Konstgalleriet, Stockholm
Dr Henry Phil
Sale; Börjessons Konsthandel, Gothenburg, where purchased by
Private Collection, Gothenburg
Their sale; Bukowski's, Stockholm, 5 May 2011, lot 247, where purchased by the present owner

André Lanskoy (1902-1976) began his career in Paris with works more akin to primitivism and futuristic still-life, however he gained recognition for his abstract compositions as his career developed. His abstract works showcase harmonious structures and exploitation of colour.

Lanskoy was born into a family of a Count and thus was forced to migrate from Imperial Russia with his family during the outbreak of the Revolution in 1917. He stayed in Kyiv for two years where he began painting in watercolour and gouache while attending the studio of Aleksandra Ekster (1882-1949), a prominent avant-garde stage decorator and artist. This acquaintance influenced Lanskoy’s vision. The artist recalled being inspired by the works of Diego Velázquez (1599-1660), El Greco (1541-1614) Vasily Kandinsky (1866-1944) and Paul Klee (1879-1940). Whilst living in Paris, Montparnasse, he quickly developed a foundation of admirers of his work and began exhibiting at the Salon d’Automne in 1923.

He began to shift from figuration in his works, turning his objects into geometrical forms. His work gives president to the role of colour and its ability to disrupt form.