Karel APPEL. The Hen. 1951. Oil on canvas, 46 x 55. Signed and dated upper right. Original wooden frame. Provenance: Ernest Van Zuylen Collection - great patron and collector from Liège, close to the CoBrA movement. The painting was acquired directly at the CoBrA exhibition at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Liège (Parc de la Boverie), in October 1951 - attested by the label on the back of the stretcher. Mr Van Zuylen continued to maintain relations with Karel Appel, as evidenced by an enhanced letter from his correspondence dated Paris, 12 May 1953, in which the artist announces his arrival in Liège "with paintings and gouaches" (archive photo available). The painting subsequently remained in the family, joining the collection of Anne de Neuville-Van Zuyen (daughter of Ernest Van Zuylen). Exhibition: Rétrospective groupement Cobra (XXXVIIe Salon du Cercle Artistique et Littéraire) Palais des Beaux-Arts, Charleroi 1964 (Exhibition label on back).