Maternity / Anatola Soungouroff (1911-1982) / Oil On Canvas

"MATERNITY", oil on canvas by the Russian-born artist Anatola Sunguroff (1911-1982). Signed "Sunguroff" lower left, countersigned and titled "Maternity" on the back of the canvas. The painting captures a moment of profound emotional intensity, where the mother, dressed in dark hues and wearing a luminous off-white veil, observes with an expression both meditative and protective, her child gently asleep and wrapped in a vibrant turquoise blue fabric. This mastery of chiaroscuro, where light seems to emanate from faces and light fabrics, is typical of the expressive technique and rich touch of Sunguroff, a painter who distinguished himself in the School of Paris and who was rewarded, notably by the title of Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres in 1963, after having exhibited in renowned galleries such as Bernheim-Jeune.

54 x 45 without frame
69 x 59 with frame

Anatole Sunguroff was a renowned painter of the 20th-century School of Paris, born on March 17, 1911 in Tallinn, then in the Russian Empire, and died in France in 1982. Arriving in Paris in the 1930s, he quickly made a name for himself by specializing in painted portraits and working for theatrical decoration, but his career was interrupted by the Second World War when, mobilized on the Moselle front, he was taken prisoner and interned in Stalag XVII B. After the war, Sunguroff returned to his brushes to develop a figurative style marked by a rich brushstroke and a masterful use of chiaroscuro, giving a deep emotional intensity to his subjects. He is particularly famous for his expressive portraits and varied genre scenes, including nudes, harlequins, gypsies and matadors. His talent was quickly recognized: he notably won the Carnegie Foundation Prize in 1950 for his painting Reclining Nude, exhibited in prestigious galleries such as Bernheim-Jeune, and was finally named Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1963, ensuring his place as an important figure in post-war figurative art.