The Fire
- Date
- May 1945
- Material
- Oil on canvas
- Classification
- Paintings
- Collection
- Modern and Contemporary Art
- Current Location
- Not on view
- Dimensions
- 76 1/2 x 90 3/4 in. (194.3 x 230.5 cm)
framed: 77 5/8 x 91 7/8 in. (197.2 x 233.4 cm) - Credit Line
- Bequest of Morton D. May
- Rights
- © Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York, NY / SABAM, Brussels
- Object Number
- 880:1983
NOTES
In this unsettling scene, a group of women advance toward a reclining androgynous figure in the center of the composition. Bonfires blaze in the distance, adding to the sense of mystic ritual. An observing skeleton grins at right. Paul Delvaux was much influenced by Italian artist Giorgio de Chirico and painted dreamlike views in a style of precise realism. Completed at the end of World War II (1939–1945), this work suggests the trauma in Delvaux’s war-torn homeland of Belgium.
Provenance
by 1948 -
Claude Spaak (1904-1990), Paris, France [1]
Mme. Gérard Bertouille, Paris, France [2]
- 1969
Joachim Jean Aberbach (1910-1992) and Julian J. Aberbach (1909-2004), Sands Point, NY, USA [3]
1969
Byron Gallery, New York, NY, purchased from Joachim Jean Aberbach
1969 - 1983
Morton D. May (1914-1983), St. Louis, MO, purchased from Byron Gallery [4]
1983 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, bequest of Morton D. May [5]
Notes:
[1] A 1948 publication lists this painting as from the collection of Claude Spaak, Paris. Other artwork from his collection was also included in the publication, including another painting by Delvaux, and works by René Magritte ["Peintres Belges Contemporains." Brussels: Les Éditions Lumière, 1948, p. 154, 170]. Claude Spaak was a Belgian dramatist who was a friend of René Magritte, and knew other Modern artists, including Paul Delvaux. It is likely that he acquired the painting directly from the artist.
[2] The invoice from Byron Gallery to Morton D. May lists only Mme. Bertouille and Joachim Jean Aberbach in the provenance [invoice dated November 28, 1969, SLAM document files].
[3] See note [2]. A 1969 exhibition catalogue includes this painting as from the collection of Julian J. and Joachim Jean Aberbach, New York. Several other works in the show were also from the Aberbach collection, but list only Joachim J. Aberbach as the lender ["Rétrospective Paul Delvaux." Paris: Musée des Arts Décoratifs, May 22 - July 28, 1969, cat. 30]. The Aberbach brothers were successful music publishers who also took an interest in the arts, and formed the Aberbach Fine Art Gallery in New York in 1972.
[4] The painting was included in a Byron Gallery exhibition in 1969 ["The Surrealists." New York: Byron Gallery, November 11 - December 21, 1969, cat. 20]. Morton D. May purchased the work from Byron Gallery during the run of this show (see note [2]).
[5] Last Will and Testament of M. D. May dated June 11, 1982 [copy, May Archives, Saint Louis Art Museum]. Minutes of the Acquisitions and Loans Committee of Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 20, 1983.
Claude Spaak (1904-1990), Paris, France [1]
Mme. Gérard Bertouille, Paris, France [2]
- 1969
Joachim Jean Aberbach (1910-1992) and Julian J. Aberbach (1909-2004), Sands Point, NY, USA [3]
1969
Byron Gallery, New York, NY, purchased from Joachim Jean Aberbach
1969 - 1983
Morton D. May (1914-1983), St. Louis, MO, purchased from Byron Gallery [4]
1983 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, bequest of Morton D. May [5]
Notes:
[1] A 1948 publication lists this painting as from the collection of Claude Spaak, Paris. Other artwork from his collection was also included in the publication, including another painting by Delvaux, and works by René Magritte ["Peintres Belges Contemporains." Brussels: Les Éditions Lumière, 1948, p. 154, 170]. Claude Spaak was a Belgian dramatist who was a friend of René Magritte, and knew other Modern artists, including Paul Delvaux. It is likely that he acquired the painting directly from the artist.
[2] The invoice from Byron Gallery to Morton D. May lists only Mme. Bertouille and Joachim Jean Aberbach in the provenance [invoice dated November 28, 1969, SLAM document files].
[3] See note [2]. A 1969 exhibition catalogue includes this painting as from the collection of Julian J. and Joachim Jean Aberbach, New York. Several other works in the show were also from the Aberbach collection, but list only Joachim J. Aberbach as the lender ["Rétrospective Paul Delvaux." Paris: Musée des Arts Décoratifs, May 22 - July 28, 1969, cat. 30]. The Aberbach brothers were successful music publishers who also took an interest in the arts, and formed the Aberbach Fine Art Gallery in New York in 1972.
[4] The painting was included in a Byron Gallery exhibition in 1969 ["The Surrealists." New York: Byron Gallery, November 11 - December 21, 1969, cat. 20]. Morton D. May purchased the work from Byron Gallery during the run of this show (see note [2]).
[5] Last Will and Testament of M. D. May dated June 11, 1982 [copy, May Archives, Saint Louis Art Museum]. Minutes of the Acquisitions and Loans Committee of Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 20, 1983.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.