Robert Detheux (1932-2010) - L’Apparition – 1978 - Belle peinture surréaliste
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Robert Detheux’s L’Apparition (1978) is an original work on paper using crayon and mixed media, measuring 51.7 × 42 cm, in very good condition and signed with the date Detheux 78.
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Description from the seller
FR :
Payment required before the evening of October 25. No shipments possible from October 26 for nearly 3 weeks (absence).
EN :
Payment required before the evening of October 25. No shipments possible from October 26 for nearly 3 weeks (absence).
Robert Detheux (1932-2010) – L’Apparition – 1978
Artist: Robert Detheux (Brussels, 1932 – Tournai, 2010)
Title of the work: L’Apparition
Date: 1978
Signature :
Signed and dated “Detheux 78” on the bottom left.
Technique :
Painting / mixed media on paper (gray-blue wash, white highlights, graphite line). Everything is painted or drawn. The background is built up with very light glazes; the figure stands out by reserves and by a barely drawn line.
Dimensions : 51.7 × 42 cm
Condition :
Very good overall condition. The washes, whites and line are well preserved. The pinkish margin of the support and the variations of material are original.
Sold unframed.
Provenance :
Artist’s studio collection (acquired directly).
Description :
A rare surrealist painting from 1978, of great gentleness. In the center, a white figure stands in the mist. The head is tilted. Around it, the line unfolds into rays: veil, hair, or wing. Below, a barely indicated dress descends and dissolves into the white. Nothing is told. Detheux does not paint a scene: he makes a presence appear.
The background is a gray-blue glaze, darker at the edges. On the right, in the gray band, small shapes surface — faces, germs, witnesses. They do not interrupt the white. They hold it back.
The line, very fine, suffices to hold the head, the shoulder and the draped fold.
L’Apparition conveys the essential. The work rests in this rare tension between tenderness and erasure, between spectral erotism and mental figure. The format, the rarity of these almost white sheets, and mastery of the wash place the painting at the heart of 1978, when Detheux achieves an extreme density with almost nothing. A piece for lovers of Belgian surrealist art sensitive to light figures, to veils and to appearances.
Artist biography
Born in Brussels in 1932 and passed away in 2010, Robert Detheux is a singular, demanding, and deeply endearing figure of 20th-century Belgian art. A graduate of the Saint-Luc Institute of Fine Arts in Brussels, he taught graphic expression at the Academy of Tournai until 1996, while developing a personal body of work of great coherence and remarkable freedom.
His artistic journey unfolds in several major periods:
From the 1950s-1960s, he asserts a powerful surrealist and expressionist language, marked by intense portraits and dreamlike compositions.
In the 1970s, to which this painting fully belongs, he explores with sensuality and obsession the theme of the body and the female face, developing hybrid figures and very elaborate textures.
The 1980s-1990s see the emergence of a more hybrid and grotesque universe, blending erotism, black humor and poetry.
Finally, the 2000-2010 period, particularly sought after today, is that of total maturity: spectral portraits, apparitions, hybrid figures and feline creatures executed with exceptional mastery.
Little exposed during his lifetime, Robert Detheux created, in complete freedom, an intimate, subversive, and poetic universe that belongs only to him. Rediscovered in recent years thanks to the unveiling of his important studio archive (almost 1500 works on paper), his work now enjoys legitimate and growing enthusiasm among discerning collectors in Belgium, Spain, and Europe.
A master of drawing and material, Detheux leaves an authentic, vibrant, and timeless oeuvre that continues to surprise and allure with its evocative power, deep humanity, and modernity.
Collecting Detheux means entering a unique dream world, populated by hybrid figures, veils, and apparitions.
Seller's Story
About SR Fine Art
With nearly 28 years of experience in the art market, I am passionate about rediscovering artists’ studios and bringing their works to a wide audience on Catawiki.
I specialize in Belgian and European modern and contemporary art. My flagship collection is the studio archive of Robert Detheux (nearly 1,500 works on paper). I also offer surrealist drawings, beautiful abstract paintings from the 1950s, magnificent nude photographs by Michel Pinel, contemporary paintings, Cobra compositions, and works by Marcus de Vestele, Gundi Falk, René Mels, Eugène Eechaut and many others.
From intimate drawings to large formats, there is something for every taste and every budget. The vast majority of my auctions start at 1 € with no reserve price, giving everyone the chance to acquire unique pieces.
Every shipment is prepared with the utmost care using professional museum-quality packaging to ensure perfect condition upon arrival.
Join my growing community of satisfied clients and follow my new auctions to discover rare works from these exceptional studios.
Thank you for your trust and happy bidding!
SR Fine Art
Translated by Google TranslateFR :
Payment required before the evening of October 25. No shipments possible from October 26 for nearly 3 weeks (absence).
EN :
Payment required before the evening of October 25. No shipments possible from October 26 for nearly 3 weeks (absence).
Robert Detheux (1932-2010) – L’Apparition – 1978
Artist: Robert Detheux (Brussels, 1932 – Tournai, 2010)
Title of the work: L’Apparition
Date: 1978
Signature :
Signed and dated “Detheux 78” on the bottom left.
Technique :
Painting / mixed media on paper (gray-blue wash, white highlights, graphite line). Everything is painted or drawn. The background is built up with very light glazes; the figure stands out by reserves and by a barely drawn line.
Dimensions : 51.7 × 42 cm
Condition :
Very good overall condition. The washes, whites and line are well preserved. The pinkish margin of the support and the variations of material are original.
Sold unframed.
Provenance :
Artist’s studio collection (acquired directly).
Description :
A rare surrealist painting from 1978, of great gentleness. In the center, a white figure stands in the mist. The head is tilted. Around it, the line unfolds into rays: veil, hair, or wing. Below, a barely indicated dress descends and dissolves into the white. Nothing is told. Detheux does not paint a scene: he makes a presence appear.
The background is a gray-blue glaze, darker at the edges. On the right, in the gray band, small shapes surface — faces, germs, witnesses. They do not interrupt the white. They hold it back.
The line, very fine, suffices to hold the head, the shoulder and the draped fold.
L’Apparition conveys the essential. The work rests in this rare tension between tenderness and erasure, between spectral erotism and mental figure. The format, the rarity of these almost white sheets, and mastery of the wash place the painting at the heart of 1978, when Detheux achieves an extreme density with almost nothing. A piece for lovers of Belgian surrealist art sensitive to light figures, to veils and to appearances.
Artist biography
Born in Brussels in 1932 and passed away in 2010, Robert Detheux is a singular, demanding, and deeply endearing figure of 20th-century Belgian art. A graduate of the Saint-Luc Institute of Fine Arts in Brussels, he taught graphic expression at the Academy of Tournai until 1996, while developing a personal body of work of great coherence and remarkable freedom.
His artistic journey unfolds in several major periods:
From the 1950s-1960s, he asserts a powerful surrealist and expressionist language, marked by intense portraits and dreamlike compositions.
In the 1970s, to which this painting fully belongs, he explores with sensuality and obsession the theme of the body and the female face, developing hybrid figures and very elaborate textures.
The 1980s-1990s see the emergence of a more hybrid and grotesque universe, blending erotism, black humor and poetry.
Finally, the 2000-2010 period, particularly sought after today, is that of total maturity: spectral portraits, apparitions, hybrid figures and feline creatures executed with exceptional mastery.
Little exposed during his lifetime, Robert Detheux created, in complete freedom, an intimate, subversive, and poetic universe that belongs only to him. Rediscovered in recent years thanks to the unveiling of his important studio archive (almost 1500 works on paper), his work now enjoys legitimate and growing enthusiasm among discerning collectors in Belgium, Spain, and Europe.
A master of drawing and material, Detheux leaves an authentic, vibrant, and timeless oeuvre that continues to surprise and allure with its evocative power, deep humanity, and modernity.
Collecting Detheux means entering a unique dream world, populated by hybrid figures, veils, and apparitions.
Seller's Story
About SR Fine Art
With nearly 28 years of experience in the art market, I am passionate about rediscovering artists’ studios and bringing their works to a wide audience on Catawiki.
I specialize in Belgian and European modern and contemporary art. My flagship collection is the studio archive of Robert Detheux (nearly 1,500 works on paper). I also offer surrealist drawings, beautiful abstract paintings from the 1950s, magnificent nude photographs by Michel Pinel, contemporary paintings, Cobra compositions, and works by Marcus de Vestele, Gundi Falk, René Mels, Eugène Eechaut and many others.
From intimate drawings to large formats, there is something for every taste and every budget. The vast majority of my auctions start at 1 € with no reserve price, giving everyone the chance to acquire unique pieces.
Every shipment is prepared with the utmost care using professional museum-quality packaging to ensure perfect condition upon arrival.
Join my growing community of satisfied clients and follow my new auctions to discover rare works from these exceptional studios.
Thank you for your trust and happy bidding!
SR Fine Art
Translated by Google TranslateDetails
Sold with frame
No
Sold by
Owner or reseller
Edition
Original
Artist
Robert Detheux (1932-2010)
Title of artwork
L’Apparition – 1978 - Belle peinture surréaliste
Technique
Chalk, Mixed media
Signature
Signed
Country of origin
Belgium
Year
1978
Condition
Good condition
Height
51.7 cm
Width
42 cm
Style
Surrealism
Period
1970-1980
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