Jean Jansem - The Judge And The Masks, 1977

Signed lower right
Original frame with label from the Galerie Maurice Garnier, Paris.

Description of the work
With The Judge and the Masks, Jean Jansem delivers a work of remarkable psychological intensity, emblematic of his most accomplished figurative painting. The composition depicts a group of hieratic, almost ghostly figures, whose faces oscillate between mask, caricature, and erasure. The judge, a central and silent figure, seems surrounded by ambiguous apparitions, poised between wavering humanity and the theater of the absurd.

The paint, deliberately fluid and translucent, partially dissolves the bodies in an undefined space, accentuating the feeling of strangeness and unease. The palette, dominated by deep grays and muted tones, is suddenly punctuated by vivid bursts of color—pinks, yellows, and acid greens—that emerge like mental visions or masks detached from reality.

This work, through its dramaturgy and use of the mask, evokes certain explorations of the Belgian painter James Ensor, while distinguishing itself through a restrained gravity and a singular emotional depth. Where Ensor tends toward satire, Jansem offers a more internalized, almost compassionate reading, where the human figure becomes the vehicle for a silent reflection on justice, guilt, and the human condition.

Provenance :
Private collection, Marseille
Collection of a Geneva collector

Jean Jansem – Career and Recognition
Born in 1920, Jean Jansem established himself in the 1950s as a major figure in post-war figurative art. Of Armenian origin, his work is deeply marked by the themes of exile, memory, and suffering, which he treats with unwavering sincerity and intensity.

Long represented by the Galerie Maurice Garnier in Paris—a leading gallery of the 20th-century figurative art scene, notably associated with Bernard Buffet—Jansem gained early institutional and international recognition. Often compared to some of his more publicized contemporaries, his work is now recognized for its depth, emotional power, and independent pictorial language, often considered by connoisseurs to be more internalized and demanding. His works are featured in numerous private collections and are regularly presented at auction, confirming his solid and enduring place in the 20th-century art market.

Assessment
A work of great maturity, The Judge and the Masks is distinguished by its rare expressive power and immediate pictorial presence. Beyond the apparent harshness of the subject, the canvas displays an emotional richness and a plastic force that make it a major piece, as historically significant as it is resolutely decorative.