Oil on canvas, newly framed. Featuring an abstract expressionist composition. Signed Theo van Doesburg (1856-1910, French) on the lower margin. 38 x 50 cm (15.0 x 19.7 inches). Frame size: 42.5 x 54.5 cm (16.7 x 21.5 inches). PROVENANCE: Southern Ontario estate

Theo van Doesburg was a Dutch artist and designer who helped found the De Stijl movement with his fellow countryman Piet Mondrian. Van Doesburg’s primary conviction was that painting, architecture, and design should be unified into an immersive environment. “What I am trying to realize is a universal form which entirely corresponds to my spiritual vision,” he once explained. Born Christian Emile Marie Kupper on August 30, 1883 in Utrecht, Netherlands, he took the name of his stepfather Theodorus Doesburg as a young man. Having first adopted a naturalistic then a Post-Impressionist style, Van Doesburg’s work abruptly changed in 1915, after seeing the paintings of Mondrian. Over the following years, the artist travelled through Europe presenting his De Stijl theories to members of the Bauhaus, Constructivists, and Dadaists. He attempted to become a professor at the Weimar Bauhaus but was turned away by its founder Walter Gropius. Van Doesburg would later collaborate with both Jean (Hans) Arp and his wife Sophie Taueber-Arp, cofound the Art Concret group, and design his own house in Meunon, France. He died on March 7, 1931 in Davos, Switzerland. Today, the artist’s works are held in the collections of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Tate Gallery in London, and the Centraal Museum in his hometown of Utrecht, among others.

All lots that do not carry established documented provenance nor any past record of auction history record are described in the catalog as attributed .

All authorship of items in this catalog are described according to the following terms:

Signed [Artist Name] : In cases in which the signature is legible in the lot, this work is described as-is with no attributions given.

By [Artist Name] : The work is by the artist.

Attributed to [Artist Name] : The work may be ascribed to the artist on the basis of style, but there may be some question as to actual authorship.

In the manner of [Artist Name] : The work was executed by an unknown hand, but was designed deliberately to emulate the style of the artist.

After [Artist Name] : The work was executed by an unknown hand, but is a deliberate copy of a known work by the artist.

Circle of [Artist Name] : A work of the period of the artist showing his influence, closely associated with the artist but not necessarily his pupil.

Follower of [Artist Name]: A work by a pupil or a follower of the artist (not necessarily a pupil).

American, 19th century : This work was executed by an unknown hand, and can only be identified by origin (i.e., region, period).