AUGUSTIN LESAGE (1876-1954) UNTITLED, 1944 Oil on canvas Signed, dated 'Mai 1944' and located 'Burbure' lower right Annotated 'Toile peinte pendant l'occupation sous les bruits des moteurs' upper part and 'Énigmes des siècles/ En souvenir d'un grand passé, Thèbes, Memphis/ La Haute et la Basse Egypte/ Lion rugissant gardien des temples' lower part Oil on canvas; signed, dated and located lower right; annotated upper and lower part 185 X 135 CM - 72 7/8 X 52 3/8 IN. Mr Pierre Guénégan has confirmed the authenticity of this work, which will be included in the catalogue raisonné currently being prepared. A certificate of authenticity will be issued to the buyer. PROVENANCE Private collection, France BIBLIOGRAPHY Olivier Chevrillon, Annick Notter, Didier Deroeux, Michel Thévoz, Augustin Lesage 1876-1954, cat. exp. Arras, Lausanne, Béthune, 1988 - Florence, 1989, Philippe Sers Editeur, Paris: 1988, plate 169, cat. 157, reproduced p. 177 and described p. 212 "Ancient Egypt played an important role in the life and work of Augustin Lesage, who was introduced to its myths during his time in spiritualist circles. Indeed, this ancient civilisation is a source of fascination for many currents of thought, which see the Egyptians as the holders of a level of spiritual initiation and knowledge lost forever. This influence had a powerful impact on the artist's work. From 1925, Egypt began to appear in the works of the painter-miner, who gave it an increasingly important place as his involvement with spiritualist circles grew. Like the representational conventions of the ancient Egyptians, Lesage's painting was marked by the use of symmetry and the organisation of registers, which appeared in his very first canvas. He also shares with Egyptian art a taste for monumentality and attention to detail. [...] Augustin Lesage saw himself as the reincarnation of an Egyptian artist, delivering the secrets of ancient Egypt through painting. It was from 1930 onwards that the artist literally quoted Egyptian objects in his work, occupying almost the entire canvas. Cédric Magniez "Augustin Lesage et l'Égypte" in. Lesage, Simon, Crépin, peintres, spirites et guérisseurs, cat. exp. LaM, 4 October 2019-5 January 2020, Villeneuve d'Ascq: 2019, p. 176.