The European Fine Art Foundation (TEFAF) has revealed a special preview of 25 works that will be presented at TEFAF Maastricht, running from
March 9th-14th, 2024 (March 7th and 8th by invitation). This “First Look” demonstrates the unrivalled appeal of TEFAF Maastricht as a destination for private collectors, museum curators, art market professionals, and enthusiasts.
Globally recognised as the world’s premier fair for fine art, antiques, and design, TEFAF Maastricht offers unparalleled collecting opportunities, bringing together a culmination of 7,000 years of art history from ancient to contemporary. This year’s fair lineup comprises 270 of the finest dealers and galleries from 22 countries, 18 of whom are first-time exhibitors. Ten galleries will be featured in the TEFAF Showcase section, which since its conception in 2008 has led the way in offering a platform at major fairs to emerging and younger galleries.
New for 2024 is the launch of TEFAF Focus, a dedicated section providing galleries with a curatorial platform to delve more deeply into the work of a single artist or concept, expanding the definition of an art fair where thought-provoking connections between diverse art forms are brilliantly displayed and appreciated.
The Master of Chimay, School of Mons
The Chimay Mourners at the Holy Sepulcher (See head of page)
16th century
Sandstone
133 x 35 x 50 cm
PRESENTED BY BLUMKA GALLERY
The Chimay Mourners at the Holy Sepulcher is the only monumental stone Entombment group recorded outside mainland Europe, aside from another given by J. Pierpont Morgan to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1916. The group consists of Joseph of Arimathea, Nicodemus, and the three Marys. Their unusual story, from the time that they were hidden in a private garden near to their original home in Chimay – probably in response to the terror and iconoclasm of the French Revolution – represents a triumph of survival. The profound emotion and drama of these figures have an immediate modern relevance. Very similar works inspired the great masters of art such as Gaugin and Picasso, while their visual power strongly speaks to the contemporary eye.
Elizabeth Fritsch
Quantum Pocket IV
2010
Hand-built stoneware
43 x 27 x 11 cm (16.9 x 10.6 x 4.3 in.)
PRESENTED BY ADRIAN SASSOON
Quantum Pocket IV is an astounding tour de force that investigates the relationship of space between two and three dimensions. Portraying the
paradoxical effects of curved space and flatness, it is entirely hand-built and features a bold display of cubic rectangles, each different in size and placed at different angles. Inspired by Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges’ 1942 surrealist story, Death and the Compass, it embodies Elizabeth Fritsch’s intellectual quest into fields such as literature, metaphysics, music, and mathematics. Quantum Pocket IV is from a series of four works of art, one of which is in the Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge, and another in the artist’s personal collection.
PRESENTED BY ARTUR RAMON ART
Martin-Guillaume Biennais
Oblong table
Moulded, chased and gilded bronze, inlaid French scagliola top
Stamped ‘Biennais au singe violet rue s. Honoré nº 283 a Paris’
71 x 72 x 45 cm (2.7 x 2.8 x 1.8 in.)
Six elegant column-shaped legs adorned with rings and a Vitruvian-scrolled frieze supporting a stunning polychromatic scagliola top. The design features intricate friezes with motifs of leaves, flowered rinceaux, and captivating frescoes depicting scenes from ancient mythology. This masterpiece reflects a revival of the antique taste, influenced by excavations in Pompeii and Herculaneum. Biennais, renowned tabletier and Napoleon’s appointed silversmith, supplied imperial residences like Malmaison and Fontainebleau, along with royal houses in Russia, Austria, and Bavaria. This masterpiece not only showcases his craftsmanship but also symbolises a timeless connection to classical aesthetics.
John William Godward
Perilla
1911
Oil on canvas
Signed and dated at top right ‘J.W. Godward 1911’
50.8 x 40 cm
PRESENTED BY BERARDI GALLERIA D’ARTE
Perilla is one of the finest profiles executed by John William Godward, the last of the great English Pre-Raphaelites and painter of pure Apollonian beauty at the turn of the 20th century. Painted during a stay in Rome, the work is part of a small and precious cycle of female portraits. Perilla, one of the daughters of the Latin poet Ovid, stands out against an elegant marble wall – a recurring motif found in his works of the 1910s. Her dark hair is gathered in a fine golden ribbon, and the red dress is combined with a lavender stole with delicate drapery.
For relevant information regarding TEFAF Maastricht, please visit www.TEFAF.com.
See also: Richard Štipl and Cognitive Dissonance in Prague
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