Mela Muter (1876 Warsaw - 1967 Paris), Boats on the Shore

oil, plywood, 38 x 46 cm
sign.p.d.: "Muter"

On the back a paper sticker with handwritten inscription: "No 40/La Seine à Triel/ Marié Mela Muter", below in pencil 1000, next to it a pen inscription: "Propriété personnelle/de Léon Herckenrath/28, rue des Sablons XVI/Paris".


Provenance:
- private collection, Poland
- Collection of Léon Herckenrath - Dutch philanthropist who resided in Paris. He was an appointee to the board of directors of the Dutch Charity Association in Paris, which was designed to provide assistance to Dutch citizens residing in France. Numerous contributions from Herckenrath are recorded, in addition to assistance in the form of lending cars. His commitment to charitable causes was noted by the American Library in Paris, which in its 44th report in 1964 lists Herckenrath as a supporter and friend who has shown financial support over the years.

A subject that Mela Muter was particularly fond of, right next to portraits, were landscapes. The artist was extremely sensitive to the beauty of the landscape around her. In her own words: "I realized that beautiful landscapes are so captivating that one feels like recreating them exactly, without one's own processing of them." (quoted in "Mela Muter, Painting/Peinture. Catalog of the Collection of the University Museum in Toruń," edited by Mirosław Adam Supruniuk, Slawomir Majoch, Toruń 2010, p. 114). The protagonists of Melani's compositions were most often views of cities, with their characteristic main monuments in the leading role. The protagonists of these depictions were primarily her beloved Avignon, or the seaside town of Collioure, in the south of France. The artist's paintings received a very positive reception among critics: " (...) We admire in Ms. Mela Muter's will to live and boundless love of nature. Landscapes, figures, compositions painted from nature in Spain or in the south of France, delight us here with the intensity of drawing and color applied in broad strokes, without the painstaking finishing of details. Vibrant motifs are captured in these, quick, synthetic notes, while a fresh trace of the artist's admiration for the eternal wonders of nature remains. How serene it all is, a true celebration of color and sunshine! " (E. Woroniecki, L'Art. polonais à Paris. Petites expositions: [...] Mme Mela Muter au Sacre de Printemps, "La Pologne politique, économique, littéraire et artistique" 1925, sem. I, p. 468). Attention was also paid to the color expression in Muter's canvases: "while in portraits, in terms of color, the artist rightly limits herself to a certain harmonized range of several colors, in landscapes she dazzles with a wealth of color" (W. Skoczylas, Exhibition of Mela Muter's works from Tow. Zacheta, "Tygodnik Ilustrowany" 1923, No. 15, April 7, p. 234).

The work presented at the auction with a view of a bend of the Seine River near La Seine à Triel bears all the characteristic features of Melani's painting. The thickly applied layer of paint gives the work a sculptural feel. The rough texture, almost coming out of the frame of the work, is alive, pulsating. Mela does not focus on a faithful reproduction of a given landscape. He captures its elements synthetically. One can almost get the impression that we see how the boats depicted by the artist, gently float to the rhythm of the flowing waves. A unique quality of the work is the introduction of an element of staffage into the composition in the form of a seated woman on the pier.