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Overview
Tomás Sánchez’s meticulously painted Meditador draws us into a lush tropical landscape that is suffused with a sense of the sublime. As is typical for Sánchez’s landscapes, a lone figure, dwarfed by nature, is shown in a state of meditation— here perfectly framed within a clearing in the tall forest and mirrored in the tranquil body of water. Painted in 1995, Meditador perfectly encapsulates the conceptual approach to landscape painting that garnered Sánchez early international attention upon winning the Joan Miró Prize in 1980. Channelling diverse art historical precedents such as Casper David Friedrich and the Hudson River School, Sánchez crucially presents us with a landscape of the mind – one that transcends geographical specificity in favor for a more spiritual, imaginary place in which man and nature are one.
"For no one escapes the spell cast by Tomás Sánchez: the more we know his work the more we love it, and the more certain we are that if the world in fact deserves to be made again, it is because, as much as it can, it resembles his painting. "
– Gabriel García Márquez
Widely celebrated as one the most acclaimed contemporary Cuban artists working today, Sánchez emerged as an artist in Havana in the 1960s. While Sánchez was part of the of vanguard contemporary artists seeking to break away from staid conventions dominating Cuban art, he radically embraced the century-old tradition of landscape painting in the late 1970s — an anomaly within an art context both locally and beyond that was defined by experimental and abstract approaches to art making. Though Sánchez embraced a hyper-realistic painting style, he did not strive for geographical exactitude, nor did he seek to idealize stereotypically "Cuban" scenes. Rather, he sought to visualize the higher states of consciousness he achieved through meditation and yoga, which that at the time were notably considered dissident activity by officials.
States of Meditation
“When I enter a state of meditation it’s as if I’m in a jungle or a forest; the mind enters into a great-exhilarated state, like an exuberant jungle where you can experience fear, desire, anguish – all types of emotions and feelings. When I begin to feel that there’s a point of inner consciousness everything goes toward that place of quiet, that inner river. Everything goes toward that place of quiet, that realm of tranquility within the forest where there is a lake." –Tomás Sánchez
Meditador perfectly encapsulates Sánchez’s distinct symbolic language to convey this interrelationship. Painting from memory, Sánchez presents us with a fantastical landscape that emerges from the rich intersection of inner reality and the concrete specificity of Cuba. As he explains, “The interior spaces that I experience in meditation are converted into the landscapes of my paintings…When I paint, I experience meditative states; through meditation I achieve a union with nature, and nature, in turn, leads me to meditation.” (Tomás Sánchez, quoted in Tomás Sánchez Artist Statement, 2016, online).
While Sánchez’s frequent depictions of bodies of water recall the surge of new reservoirs and artificial lakes that were built during the initial phase of the Cuban Revolution, he above all infuses them with spiritual meaning. Water in his paintings represent certain states of awareness that can be achieved through meditation — with rivers, for example, symbolizing the power of spiritual regeneration and shores standing in as the state all individuals strive for.Hommage to Casper David Friedrich
Sánchez powerfully re-interprets the compositional motif of the Rueckenfigur (figure seen from behind) within the context of his time and place; commonly employed by German Romantic painters such as Casper David Friedrich, the compositional device of portraying a person with theirback to the viewer offers us a means to vicariously experience the depicted scene.
Casper David Friedrich, Wanderer above the Sea of Fog (detail), 1818. Hamburger Kunsthalle. Detail of present lot
As Edward J. Sullivan has observed of Sánchez’s paintings, "in a number of them a small male figure stands or sits with his back to the viewer, serving as a witness to the scene and evidencing the power of nature which, at any moment, could overtake the fragile human existence to exert its inherent majesty” (Edward J. Sullivan, Tomás Sánchez: Traversing Multiple Paths, online). Just like the lone meditating figure, the viewer in Meditator is drawn into a state of contemplation and introspection.Provenance
Private Collection, New York (acquired directly from the artist)
Christie’s, New York, November 15, 2005, lot 39
Acquired at the above sale by the present owner
142
Meditador
signed and dated “Tomás Sánchez 95” lower right; further signed, titled and dated "Tomás Sánchez "MEDITADOR" 95” on the reverse
acrylic on canvas
39 1/4 x 48 in. (99.7 x 121.9 cm)
Painted in 1995, this work is accompanied by a photo certificate signed by the artist.
Estimate
$250,000 - 350,000
Sold for $399,000
John McCord
Head of Day Sale, Morning Session
New York
+1 212 940 1261
20th c. & Contemporary Art Day Sale, Morning Session
New York Auction 2 July 2020
101
Anne Truitt
Parva XIII
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $93,750
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102
Ed Moses
Untitled
Estimate $15,000 - 20,000
Sold for $16,250
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103
James Turrell
Hologram (IV 01)
Estimate $30,000 - 50,000
Sold for $50,000
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104
Lee Bontecou
Untitled
Estimate $60,000 - 80,000
Sold for $105,000
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105
Ad Reinhardt
Untitled
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
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106
Mark Tobey
Untitled
Estimate $15,000 - 20,000
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107
Hans Hofmann
Yellow Glow
Estimate $25,000 - 35,000
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108
Joan Mitchell
Untitled
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
Sold for $102,500
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109
Robert Motherwell
Untitled
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $23,750
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110
Helen Frankenthaler
1973 (Thanksgiving Day)
Estimate $15,000 - 20,000
Sold for $47,500
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111
Ed Clark
Untitled
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $47,500
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112
Ed Clark
Untitled
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $47,500
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113
Mary Corse
Untitled (Black White Inner Band, Beveled)
Estimate $220,000 - 280,000
Sold for $250,000
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114
Tony Smith
Spitball
Estimate $50,000 - 70,000
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115
Robert Ryman
Bent Line Drawing 20" x 20"
Estimate $50,000 - 70,000
Sold for $56,250
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116
Kenneth Noland
Resect
Estimate $200,000 - 300,000
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117
Carlos Cruz-Diez
Chromointerférence Mécanique
Estimate $80,000 - 100,000
Sold for $90,000
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118
Yayoi Kusama
Flower
Estimate $18,000 - 22,000
Sold for $20,000
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119
Robert Morris
Untitled (Hypnerotomachia Series)
Estimate $18,000 - 22,000
Sold for $68,750
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120
Louise Nevelson
Young Tree XXIV
Estimate $30,000 - 50,000
Sold for $110,000
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121
George Rickey
Broken Line (Two Lines Horizontal)
Estimate $40,000 - 60,000
Sold for $40,000
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122
John Chamberlain
Untitled
Estimate $12,000 - 18,000
Sold for $15,000
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123
Lucas Samaras
Chair with Reclining Curvaceous V
Estimate $70,000 - 100,000
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124
Deborah Butterfield
Chestnut
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
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125
Julian Schnabel
Insomnolent Brown Trimmed in Mink
Estimate $120,000 - 180,000
Sold for $250,000
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126
Julian Schnabel
Lazarus, Second Painting for Aldo Moro
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
Sold for $435,000
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127
Mary Heilmann
Lil Totem
Estimate $50,000 - 70,000
Sold for $137,500
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128
This lot is no longer available.
129
Philip Guston
Untitled (double-sided drawing)
Estimate $40,000 - 60,000
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130
Jack Tworkov
Torso
Estimate $10,000 - 15,000
Sold for $9,375
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131
André Breton
Four works: (i-iv) Untitled
Estimate $15,000 - 20,000
Sold for $16,250
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132
Joseph Cornell
Sandsifter Box
Estimate $180,000 - 250,000
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133
Fernand Léger
Untitled Composition
Estimate $18,000 - 22,000
Sold for $28,750
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134
Jacques Lipchitz
Study for Pastorale
Estimate $12,000 - 18,000
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135
Henri Laurens
Femme couchée
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
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136
Henri Laurens
La jeune soeur
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
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137
Fernando Botero
Woman with Serpent
Estimate $200,000 - 250,000
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138
Fernando Botero
Danseuse équilibriste à cheval
Estimate $35,000 - 50,000
Sold for $37,500
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139
Wifredo Lam
Untitled
Estimate $120,000 - 180,000
Sold for $150,000
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140
Loló Soldevilla
Sin Título
Estimate $30,000 - 40,000
Sold for $52,500
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141
José Gurvich
Untitled
Estimate $25,000 - 35,000
Sold for $77,500
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142
Tomás Sánchez
Meditador
Estimate $250,000 - 350,000
Sold for $399,000
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143
Gerhard Richter
Onkel Rudi
Estimate $18,000 - 22,000
Sold for $21,250
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144
Anselm Kiefer
Lilith
Estimate $70,000 - 100,000
Sold for $68,750
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145
Kenny Scharf
Coconut Star
Estimate $25,000 - 35,000
Sold for $50,000
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146
Kenny Scharf
Spacemeats
Estimate $45,000 - 55,000
Sold for $81,250
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147
Jim Dine
2 Moons
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
Sold for $81,250
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148
Alighiero Boetti
Entre loup et chien
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $30,000
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149
Tom Wesselmann
Study for Face Aquatint
Estimate $25,000 - 35,000
Sold for $22,500
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150
Richard Pettibone
Andy Warhol, Marlon, 1963
Estimate $30,000 - 50,000
Sold for $37,500
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151
Ed Ruscha
S
Estimate $15,000 - 20,000
Sold for $27,500
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152
Richard Artschwager
Pull
Estimate $25,000 - 35,000
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153
Al Held
Untitled
Estimate $10,000 - 15,000
Sold for $21,250
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154
Ralph Humphrey
Station
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $22,500
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155
Larry Poons
Untitled
Estimate $20,000 - 30,000
Sold for $200,000
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156
Paul Jenkins
Phenomena Forecast of Fire
Estimate $25,000 - 35,000
Sold for $75,000
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157
Patrick Hughes
Stairs to the Stars
Estimate $40,000 - 60,000
Sold for $112,500
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