RENÉ MAGRITTE (Lessines 1898-1967 Brussels) Moralité du sommeil. Circa 1941. Gouache on paper. Signed upper right: magritte. Verso with confirmation of authenticity by the wife of the artist. 33 × 24.1 cm. Provenance: - Gilbert Sénécaut, Antwerp. - Renée Lachowsky, Brussels. - Christian Fayt, Knokke-Heist. - Mr and Mrs Wim Poppe, Belgium, 1978. - Private collection, Switzerland. - Sale Sotheby's, London, 7.12.1983, lot 389. - With Waddington Galleries, London (label verso), acquired at the above auction. - Private collection, Monte Carlo, acquired in 1984 from the above gallery. - With Waddington Galleries, London. - Private collection, Switzerland, acquired from the above gallery on 15.6.1990. Exhibited: London 1984, Works on Paper, Waddington Galleries, 2-26 May 1984, p. 45, no. 21 (with ill. p. 23). Literature: David Sylvester: René Magritte. Catalogue raisonné, Antwerp 1994, vol. IV, p. 46, no. 1164 (with ill.). Although René Magritte's expressive gouache is not dated, it can be narrowed down to the early 1940s based on various references: The idea of the hollow body behind bars goes back to the work "Le thérapeute", which the artist first painted in gouache in 1936 and then in oil in 1937. A woman with long flowing hair, framed by a blue curtain and a landscape suggested in the background can be found in the painting "La connaissance naturelle" from early 1941. And one of the drawings that Magritte made for Paul Eluard's poem "Moralité du sommeil" depicts exactly the same figure. This collaborative work was first published in Brussels in 1941. The poet friend, one of the most important exponents of literary surrealism, played a key role in organising the 1938 "Exposition Internationale du Surréalisme" in the Galerie Beaux-Arts in Paris, where the painting "Le thérapeute" was exhibited. The woman's body is not only empty, but also dark - even black - and behind bars. This leaves much room for surrealist interpretations. The figure is trapped in her unconscious thoughts: irrational, heavy and dark. At the same time, this confined being represents both limitation and protection. The black cannot spread endlessly; it is contained by the double curtain of blonde hair and blue fabric. Outside waits the real world, brighter and less threatening, as indicated by the gentle hills. Putting aside the deeper meaning, the eye can simply enjoy the remarkably strong use of colour with the dramatic contrast between yellow, blue and black; or the skillful play of light and shadow, which makes the curtain and the figure's hair darker and darker from left to right. ------------------------------------------------- RENÉ MAGRITTE (Lessines 1898-1967 Brussels) Moralité du sommeil. Circa 1941. Gouache on paper. Signed upper right: magritte. With confirmation of authenticity by the artist's wife on the verso. 33 × 24.1 cm. Provenance: - Gilbert Sénécaut, Antwerp. - Renée Lachowsky, Brussels. - Christian Fayt, Knokke-Heist. - Mr and Mrs Wim Poppe, Belgium, 1978. - Swiss private collection. - Sotheby's auction, London, 7.12.1983, lot 389. - Waddington Galleries, London (labelled on verso), acquired at the above auction. - Private collection Monte Carlo, 1984, acquired at the above gallery. - Waddington Galleries, London. - Swiss private collection, acquired at the above gallery on 15 June 1990. Exhibition: London 1984, Works on Paper, Waddington Galleries, 2-26 May 1984, p. 45, no. 21 (with illus. p. 23). Literature: David Sylvester: René Magritte. Catalogue raisonné, Antwerp 1994, vol. IV, p. 46, no. 1164 (with illus.). Although this expressive gouache by René Magritte is not dated, it can be narrowed down fairly well to the early 1940s on the basis of various references: The idea of the hollow body behind bars goes back to the works "Le thérapeute", which the artist first produced in gouache in 1936 and then in oil in 1937. A woman with long flowing hair, framed by a blue curtain and the suggested landscape in the background, can be found in the painting "La connaissance naturelle" from early 1941. And one of the drawings that Magritte illustrated for Paul Éluard's poem "Moralité du sommeil" depicts exactly the same figure. This joint work was first published in Brussels in 1941. The poet friend, one of the most important exponents of literary surrealism, played a key role in the organisation of the 1938 "Exposition Internationale du Surréalisme" at the Galerie Beaux-Arts in Paris, where the painting "Le thérapeute" was exhibited. The woman's body in "Moralité du sommeil" is not only empty, but also dark, even black and barred. This leaves plenty of room for surreal interpretations. The figure is trapped in her irrational, dark, heavy and unconscious thoughts. At the same time, this confinement also has the component of limitation, of protection. The black cannot spread endlessly, which in turn is reinforced by the double curtain, that of the blonde hair and the blue one made of fabric. Outside, the real, brighter and less threatening world awaits, which is hinted at in the gentle rolling hills. Putting the deeper meaning to one side, the eye can also simply enjoy the wonderfully vibrant application of colour with the exciting contrast between yellow, blue and black or the skilful play of light and shadow, which makes the curtain and hair darker and darker from left to right.