Title: Guy Nicod; Abstract Landscape with Red Form and Cypress French Modernist Gouache Description: Title: Abstract Landscape with Red Form and Cypress French Modernist Gouache Guy Nicod (French 1923 - 2021) Gouache on artist paper, unframed Size: 15.75 x 19 inches (height x width) Provenance: Artists estate, France Condition: good overall with some light handling marks and minor edge wear consistent with age Description: This expressive gouache by French modernist Guy Nicod presents an abstracted landscape rendered with bold brushstrokes and vibrant colour contrasts. On the left, a dynamic red, circular form anchors the composition, its sweeping arcs suggesting both movement and solidity. To the right, two tall, dark vertical strokes evoke the silhouette of cypress trees, their twisting shapes set against fields of ochre yellow and passages of soft green and blue. In the background, a cluster of orange forms rises like a distant town or fortress, simplified into geometric blocks that hover between representation and abstraction. Horizontal streaks of mauve and grey in the upper register suggest cloud or sky, balancing the energetic movement of the lower half of the painting. Nicod’s use of gouache here emphasises gesture and immediacy. Rather than carefully blended transitions, the work relies on confident, painterly marks that celebrate the material qualities of pigment and paper. The interplay between figuration and abstraction reflects the broader modernist tendency of mid-20th century France, where artists often reduced landscapes to their essential shapes, colours, and rhythms. The painting resonates with the spirit of post-war European abstraction, while retaining a grounding in the natural world. It suggests a landscape not as it appears, but as it is felt—alive with colour, atmosphere, and symbolic presence. This work will appeal to collectors of modernist abstraction, French mid-century works on paper, and expressive landscapes. Its dynamic forms and bold palette make it a striking piece for both private collections and interior display.
Reserve: $447.00
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