Marcel Coucy Or Couci (1885–1964), Agay, 1907. School Of Crozant, Detroy, Guillaumin, Gargilesse

A STUNNING new work by Marcel Coucy depicting a view of Agay in 1907, signed in the lower right corner and dated on the reverse.
Dimensions of the canvas alone (unframed): 60x73cm; 78x91cm including the frame.
The canvas is in good original condition; it has been thoroughly cleaned and inspected by a professional. Note a small repair toward the bottom with no patching on the reverse.
Delivered in a lovely vintage Montparnasse frame from the 1950s.
Authenticity guaranteed.

This is indeed a magnificent Post-Impressionist composition with Fauvist tendencies by Marcel Coucy, who painted a view of the coast and rocks at Agay in 1907, that is, at the height of the Fauvist movement, as evidenced by the intense vermilion reds and oranges—yet so realistic, just as the rocks of the Esterel truly are. He adds superb blues and turquoise for the sea, as well as deep greens for the pine trees. Furthermore, Coucy employs an extremely powerful brushstroke rich in texture, which sets him apart from his mentor Léon Detroy; in short, this is a true little masterpiece by the artist. 
Indeed, how can one not think of Detroy upon seeing this composition? In fact, perhaps they were together when Coucy painted this work. A few years ago, I sold one of Coucy’s early paintings of Agay, dated 1907 (see last photo).
This painting could have been included in the superb exhibition currently on view at the Draguignan Museum “The Red Rocks: An Artistic Bloom in the Estérel at the Dawn of the 20th Century,” alongside his friends from the Crozant School—Guillaumin, Detroy, Ballot, Pailler, and Alluaud. I highly recommend visiting this exhibition; in fact, it’s been so successful that it’s been extended. If you’re unable to attend, you can purchase the catalog, which is richly detailed and illustrated.

I need not introduce Marcel Coucy—sometimes spelled Couci (he actually signed his name using both spellings)—an iconic painter of the Crozant School and the Gargilesse Group.
After getting his start in Paris, where he frequented the Bateau Lavoir and mingled with the great painters, poets, and writers who were active in the city at the time, he became very close friends with Mac Orlan. The Great War put a halt to his progress, as he was even wounded; it was from there that he chose to come to Gargilesse to convalesce, where he met Detroy and even his wife, who was none other than the proprietress of the Hôtel des Artistes. Coucy thus became a fixture in this prominent town in the Creuse Valley, where he would set up his easel for the rest of his life—at first alongside Detroy—and they would also travel together to Agay and Corsica... Starting in the 1930s, Coucy became part of another group, another generation, alongside Chéreau, Villeboeuf, Debourg, and above all Anders Osterlind. At that time, his painting evolved toward Fauvist Expressionism; his brushstrokes broadened and his palette simplified, bringing his work very close to that of Anders.
Although his output is somewhat irregular, the quality of his outstanding paintings has made him a leading artist of the Crozant school and one of the most sought-after by collectors today, as evidenced by the steady rise in his market value and his increasingly high auction results.
P.S.: FYI, I’m also offering a very lovely watercolor by Marcel Couci—check out my other listing.