Salvador Dalí: Masterpieces from the Argillet Collection Archives
Masterpieces from The Argillet Collection Archives
from the Vault of the Argillet Collection
Masterpieces
Masterpieces from the Vault of the Argillet Collection
Venture into realms of the bizarre, the fantastical, and the uncanny where dreamlike landscapes and ink-splattered mythological visions meet magical bullfights and figures crowned in blooming florals
West Chelsea Contemporary is proud to present Salvador Dalí: Masterpieces from the Argillet Collection Archives, an unprecedented exhibition showcasing rare works by one of the most iconic artists of the 20th century Featuring over 100 handcolored etchings and debuting never-before-exhibited originals, this exhibition offers an unparalleled opportunity to explore Dali’s surrealist imagination and acquire pieces from the most authenticated collection of his work.
As one of the most widely recognized artists in history, Salvador Dalí has left an indelible mark on both the art world and popular culture. His legacy is firmly cemented in the canon of modern art, with works held in the most prestigious collections across the globe from the Tate Modern and Centre Pompidou to the Museum of Modern Art and fetching multimillions on the secondary market.
The Argillet Collection is a direct archive of the publisher who brought Dalí’s surrealist vision to life in print Pierre Argillet Now overseen by his daughter Christine Argillet, this critically acclaimed collection offers rare insight into Dalí’s creative process and stands as a tribute to the pair’s collaborative partnership that spanned over fifty years.
For the first time, these extraordinary pieces are being presented alongside works from Christine Argillet's personal collection, providing an intimate view into one of the 20th century’s most significant artistic partnerships
Accompanying Dalí’s masterpieces, this exhibition features works by the artist’s avant-garde contemporaries Hans Bellmer, Giorgio de Chirico, Leonor Fini, Man Ray, and Wassily Kandinsky drawing from the Argillet Collection archive to place Dalí’s work in the broader context of the Surrealist movement he helped define.
Following the centennial of Surrealism, this exhibition stands as a testament to the lasting influence of Salvador Dalí. West Chelsea Contemporary is honored to host this monumental collection and to offer you a rare opportunity to acquire works that belong to art history itself.
SALVADOR DALÍ Spanish, 1904–1989
Salvador Dalí is one of the most celebrated artists of all time and an icon of Surrealism, the 20th-century avant-garde movement that sought to release unconscious creative potential through art that featured dreamlike imagery. Dalí’s fantastical prints, paintings, sculptures, films, and writing helped cement the movement’s identity Working off psychoanalytic ideas, Dalí rendered fantastical creatures and landscapes that could unsettle and awe His fiercely technical yet highly unusual works ushered in a new generation of imaginative expression. His 1931 canvas The Persistence of Memory is one of the most recognizable artworks of all time, leaving a lasting impact on 20th-century art and culture Dali’s legacy has become a symbol of artistic innovation, intellectual freedom, and eccentricity, influencing not only the art world, but also popular culture, fashion, and film.
Dalí exhibited widely in his lifetime, and his works belong in the collections of institutions including the Tate, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Art Institute of Chicago, among others. His work has fetched multimillions of dollars on the secondary market
ARGILLET COLLECTION
The Argillet Collection is a tribute to the work of Pierre Argillet, an extraordinary publisher of the Dada and Surrealist groups Now overseen by his daughter Christine Argillet, West Chelsea Contemporary is proud to present over 100 works by Salvador Dalí direct from the publisher that epitomize his macabre yet humorous vision
This collection reflects the fascinating collaboration between Pierre Argillet and Salvador Dalí that began in 1934 and lasted more than fifty years. Together, they produced nearly 200 etchings drawing upon various themes from Greek Mythology to literary texts by Apollinaire and Goethe. Many consider the 1960’s the “Golden Age” of Dalí’s prints, a decade that saw some of the most brilliant works to be produced by the artist.
In Christine Argillet’s own words “[Pierre Argillet] began as a journalist with a true passion for Surrealism. His relationship with Dalí was as sincere as it was passionate. They had long discussions together on the art in process and on literary topics that Dalí would then illustrate Dalí was a man who saw the world as one in which everything was linked. That view of the world is evident in each and every piece of his art, for him it was never a progression of the idea that all things have a shared link it was the common denominator Dalí’s philosophy if you will”
The Argillet Collection demonstrates high standards of quality and the impassioned collaboration between an artist and his publisher. This ensemble of works has appeared in the best-known museums in the world, including: Musée Rotterdam 1971; Kunsthaus, Zürich and Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart, 1989; and the Hiroshima Prefectural Museum of Art, Japan, 1990. This collection's permanent home is at the Museum of Surrealism in Melun, France and the Dalí Museum in Figueras, Spain
Salvador Dalï and Christine Argillet in Dalí’s garden | Port Lligat, Spain, 1963
Photo: The Argillet Collection
HAND-COLORED ETCHINGS
For over fifty years Salvador Dalí worked closely with the legendary Surrealist publisher Pierre Argillet to bring his visions to life in print. Their close collaboration and friendship resulted in the production of over 200 etchings, the majority of which were hand painted by Dalí after printing lending a unique quality to each impression. Dalí’s masterful etchings highlight the varied nature of the technique's effects with thin fluid lines that can range from graceful and serpentine to tight and abrasive In many of these works, Dalí experimented with using rubies and diamonds as engraving tools, a technique that lent an incomparable delicacy to the design
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$6,325
Salvador Dalí Vitrail (33/100), 1969
Salvador Dalí Incantation (88/100), 1960
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11 50"
$8,525
Hand-colored etching
26 50" x 20"
$9,845
Salvador Dalí Diane de Poitiers (22/100), 1971
Salvador Dalí Saint Julien Le Pauvre (22/100), 1971
Hand-colored etching
26" x 20"
$10,945
Hand-colored etching
20" x 26 50"
Salvador Dalí Notre-Dame de Paris (36/100), 1969
$10,945
Salvador Dalí Blue Horses (12/100), 1966
Hand-colored etching
25 50" x 20"
$10,945
Salvador Dalí Saint Anne (27/100), 1965
Hand-colored etching
30" x 22 50"
$10,945
Hand-colored etching
15" x 22"
$12,500
Salvador Dalí Circé (24/150), 1969
Salvador Dalí Marilyn Monroe (41/100), 1967
Hand-colored etching
26" x 20"
$9,845
Salvador Dalí Drawers of Memory (94/150), 1965
Lithograph 24 50" x 37 90"
$46,000
SONGS OF MALDOROR
Salvador Dalí's illustrations for Les Chants de Maldoror (The Songs of Maldoror), a poetic novel by Isidore Ducasse, reflect both his personal visions and his commentary on the Surrealist movement Using a stream-of-consciousness technique, Dalí tapped into his hallucinations and delusions, which became the basis for his striking and bizarre illustrations. This rare portfolio contains 50 etchings that remain among the artist’s most sought after graphic works due to its limited edition and intricate, dreamlike imagery.
Dalí's illustrations complement the book's rebellious spirit and non-linear narrative, which resonate with the Surrealist penchant for combining fantastic imagery with visionary texts. These illustrations are regarded as some of Dalí's finest book art, capturing the book’s nefarious and absurdist themes while aligning with Surrealism’s embrace of the irrational and the unconscious.
Set of 50 drypoint etchings on Arches paper 13" x 10"
Price on request
Salvador Dalí Songs of Maldoror (30/100), 1934/73
APOLLINAIRE
In 1967 Salvador Dalí created a suite of 18 etchings based on Poèmes Secrets (Secret Poems) by Guillaume Apollinaire. Considered one of the foremost poets of the early 20th century, Apollinaire was also one of the most impassioned defenders of Cubism and a forefather of Surrealism He is credited with coining the term Cubism in 1911, the term Orphiosm in 1912, and the term Surrealism in 1918.
Dalí’s initial plan was to illustrate a number of songs by French singer-songwriter Georges Brassens, shown with his guitar singing in Woman with Guitar. However, the singer’s agent recommended so many changes that Dalí shifted themes and turned his composition The Trenches into a military ground, where time seems at a standstill with a melting clock rock. Seeing a correlation in this work with the 1914-1918 War, Pierre Argillet suggested that instead Dalí illustrate the Secret Poems by Apollinaire. From this point forward, the series took a more unconventional, more surrealist turn, with compositions such as Woman with Snail, Woman at the Fountain covered by giant ants, and The Drawers who winds up devouring his guitar
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$8,525
Salvador Dalí Apollinaire "Couple Frontispiece" (118/145), 1967
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$8,525
Salvador Dalí Apollinaire "The 1914-18 War" (113/145), 1967
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$8,525
Salvador Dalí Apollinaire "Woman with Guitar" (117/145), 1967
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Apollinaire "Woman, Horse, and Death" (38/145), 1967
$10,945
Hand colored etching
Salvador Dalí Apollinaire "The Drawers" (111/145), 1967
15" x 11"
$8,525
colored etching
15"
Salvador Dalí Apollinaire "The Beach at Sete" (81/145), 1967
Hand
x 11"
$8,525
colored etching
Salvador Dalí Apollinaire "Woman at the Fountain" (87/145), 1967
Hand
15" x 11"
$8,525
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$8,525
Salvador Dalí Apollinaire “Woman with Parrot" (83/145), 1967
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$8,525
Salvador Dalí Apollinaire "Woman with Snail" (32/145), 1967
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$8,525
Salvador Dalí Apollinaire "The Trenches" (141/145), 1967
FAUST
Between 1968 and 1969 Salvador Dalí created a series of twenty-one etchings based on the passage La Nuit de Walpurgis (Walpurgis Night) in Faust, the great literary work of German poet Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe. In these works, Dalí used rubies and diamonds as engraving tools, a technique that lent an incomparable delicacy to the design.
Various scenes in Faust appear within a magic circle or utilize circular motifs to create dynamic configurations. This series highlights Dalí’s masterful use of chiaroscuro, evocative of Rembrandt’s etchings. In Sator, Dali creates alchemical signs formed by his inverted signature, adding an esoteric dimension to the composition.
Hand-colored etching
15"
Salvador Dalí Faust "Portrait of Marguerite" (50/145), 1968
x 11"
$38,150
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Faust "The Bust" (93/150), 1968
$7,425
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$7,425
Salvador Dalí Faust "Sator" (38/145), 1968
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Faust "Kneeling Knight" (71/145), 1968
$7,425
15" x 11"
$11,000
Salvador Dalí Faust "Knight and Death" (81/150), 1968
Hand-colored etching
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$7,425
Salvador Dalí Faust "Old Faust" (87/150), 1968
15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Faust "Woman with Clown" (91/150), 1968
Hand-colored etching
$7,425
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Faust "Witches with Broom" (9/145), 1968
$11,950
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Faust "Hen Women" (84/150), 1968
$7,425
15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Faust "Woman with Pig" (39/150), 1968
Hand-colored etching
$7,425
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Faust "Golden Veal" (73/145), 1968
$7,425
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$6,325
Salvador Dalí Faust Vignettes "Faust and Marguerite" (104/150), 1968
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Faust Vignettes "The Magic Circle" (96/100), 1968
$6,325
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$6,325
Salvador Dalí Faust Vignettes "Lily Flower" (21/150), 1968
Hand-colored etching
14 96" x 11 02"
$6,325
Salvador Dalí Faust Vignettes "Grotesque" (13/150), 1968
Salvador Dalí Faust Vignettes "The Phiole" (81/150), 1968
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$6,325
Salvador Dalí Faust Vignettes "The Doe" (42/150), 1968
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$6,325
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$6,325
Salvador Dalí Faust Vignettes "Silhouette" (70/150), 1968
MYTHOLOGY
From the birth of Venus to the fall of Icarus, Salvador Dalí often depicted scenes from classical mythology in his paintings and prints. Dalí’s interest in mythology stemmed from his admiration for the psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, who taught that ancient myths reveal fundamental truths about the human psyche. Between 1961 and 1965, Dalí explored the symbolism of these ancient tales with his Mythology series, a collection of 16 prints featuring Narcissus, Medusa, and other mythic figures.
This series also highlights Salvador Dalí's daring and experimental techniques in printmaking. While working on certain pieces, the artist would throw snail shells filled with etching acid onto the metal plates that would form random shapes serving as a foundation for his composition. Dalí referred to this technique as "hasard objectif," the meaningful manifestation of chance. This is particularly noticeable in etchings such as Oedipus and Sphinx, Theseus and Minotaurus, and The Milky Way. When Dalí worked on these plates, he experimented with all kinds of unusual tools and even used a real octopus immersed in acid, which left its imprint on his etching plate for Medusa
Salvador Dalí Mythology "Medusa" (33/100), 1963
Hand-colored etching 22" x 30"
$29,950
Salvador Dalí Mythology “Judgement of Paris” (82/100), 1963
Hand-colored etching
30" x 22"
$29,950
Hand-colored etching
25 5" x 30"
$29,950
Salvador Dalí Mythology "Pegasus" (11/100), 1964
Hand-colored etching 30 25" x 22 75"
$14,245
Salvador Dalí Mythology "Athena" (38/100), 1965
Hand-colored etching
Salvador Dalí Mythology "Theseus & Minotaurus" (65/100), 1964
30" x 22"
$13,950
Hand-colored etching 22 50"
$16,500
Salvador Dalí Mythology "Milky Way" (41/100), 1964
x 30"
30" x 22 50"
Salvador Dalí Mythology "Oedipus and Sphinx" (15/100), 1964
Hand-colored etching
$19,250
Hand-colored etching
30 25" x 22 75"
$10,350
Salvador Dalí Mythology "Saturn" (29/100), 1965
Hand-colored etching
30" x 22 50"
Salvador Dalí Mythology "Narcissus" (41/100), 1965
$14,245
Hand-colored etching
30" x 22"
Salvador Dalí Mythology “Leda and the Swan” (97/100), 1964
$24,500
THE HIPPIES
In 1969, Pierre Argillet came back from a trip to India with numerous personal photographs These images inspired Dalí and served as the groundwork for his series entitled Les Hippies (The Hippies), the artist’s own interpretation of the “Love and Peace” years. The etchings in this series reveal the superb, spontaneous, and consummate technique of Dalí at the peak of his maturity. Outlandish, surrealist characters and situations appear through intricate whirls and golden halos.
26 50" x 20"
Salvador Dalí
The Hippies "Flower-Women with a Soft Piano" (6/100), 1969
Hand-colored etching
$38,150
Salvador Dalí
The Hippies "Women in the Waves" (8/100), 1969
Hand-colored etching
26" x 20"
$25,400
Hand-colored etching
26" x 20"
Salvador Dalí
The Hippies "Nude with Garter" (70/100), 1969
$25,000
Hand-colored etching
26 50" x 20"
$14,500
Salvador Dalí
The Hippies "The Old Hippy" (92/100), 1969
Hand-colored etching
26" x 20"
Salvador Dalí
The Hippies "Santiago de Compostella" (37/100), 1969
$11,500
etching
Salvador Dalí The Hippies "The Sun" (40/100), 1969
Hand-colored
26" x 20"
$10,400
Hand-colored etching
26 50" x 20"
$6,325
Salvador Dalí The Hippies "Pagoda" (85/100), 1969
Salvador Dalí
The Hippies "Cosmonaut" (25/100), 1969
Hand-colored etching
26" x 20"
$10,350
Salvador Dalí
The Hippies "Woman with Cushion" (81/100), 1969
Hand-colored etching
26" x 20"
$10,350
Hand-colored etching
25 75" x 19 75"
$25,400
Salvador Dalí
The Hippies "Corridor Of Katmandu" (88/100), 1969
MAO ZEDONG
Amidst the Cultural Revolution in China, followed shortly by the May 1968 riots in France, Pierre Argillet brought back a book of poems by Mao Zedong Tickled, Dalí decided to create eight illustrations inspired by the text as political satires. His work The 100 Flowers references one of Zedong’s political philosophies which got its name from his own poetry. Here, Dalí chose to illustrate these flowers as towering fleurs-de-lis, symbols of royalty, with people attempting to reach them. The Turtle Mountain depicts two mountains referenced in Zedong’s poems as gigantic, antediluvian animals wandering in the midst of excrements that resemble the Yin and Yang symbol When asked why his composition Bust of Mao was a headless Chinese uniform, Dalí responded wryly “Well, the man is so tall that he didn’t fit on the page!”
Hand colored etching
15"
Salvador Dalí Mao Zedong “Bust of Mao“ (43/150), 1967
x 11"
$4,950
etching
15"
Salvador Dalí Mao Zedong "Petite Horses" (59/150), 1967
Hand colored
x 11"
$10,945
SURREALIST BULLFIGHT
Between 1966 and 1967 Salvador Dalí created a suite of 7 works called Surrealist Bullfight. This series was inspired by Pablo Picasso’s “Tauromachie” works that depict the Catalan theme of bullfighting
Dalí’s bullfight etchings epitomize his surrealist style with their burlesque touches. Bishops are seen blessing macabre parades where the bull ends up in a grand piano and a hallucinogenic matador gazes at the audience like a sad clown. Parrots and fish turn into toreadors, while a burning giraffe, a lion, or a statue stand within the arena.
Salvador Dalí Surrealist Bullfight "The Mills" (52/100), 1966
Hand colored etching
20" x 26 50"
$10,350
Salvador Dalí
Surrealist Bullfight “Surrealist Bullfight with Statue” (17/150), 1966
Hand colored etching
20" x 26"
$10,350
colored etching
Salvador Dalí Surrealist Bullfight "The Parrots" (83/100), 1967
Hand
20" x 26 50"
$27,500
Salvador Dalí Surrealist Bullfight "The Television" (14/150), 1966
Hand colored etching
20" x 26 50"
$10,350
20" x 26 50"
Salvador Dalí Individual Bullfight (26/100), 1966
Hand-colored etching
$33,600
VENUS IN FURS
In keeping with Surrealism’s celebration of sexuality and exploration of desire, Dalí created a collection of 20 etchings interpreting the text Venus in Furs by Austria nobleman and writer Sacher-Masoch Throughout the series, portrays himself across genders either in pain or inflicting pain in a setting where Eros, the Greek god of love, and Thanatos, the Greek god of death are laughing at each other Venus in Furs is a major, powerful series where Dalí’s freedom of line and thought are best expressed.
Sacher-Masoch’s original text describes the obsessions of Severin von Kusiemski, a European nobleman who desires to be enslaved to a woman. Severin finds his ideal of voluptuous cruelty in the merciless Wanda von Dunajew. Published in 1870, the novel gained notoriety and a degree of immortality for its author when the word “masochism” derived from his name entered the vocabulary of psychiatry. This remains a classic literary statement on sexual submission and control
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$8,000
Salvador Dalí Venus In Furs "Whips Alley" (90/150), 1969
Hand-colored etching 15"
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs "Woman with Whip" (90/150), 1969
x 11"
$8,000
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs "The Purple Boot" (72/150), 1969
$8,000
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$8,000
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs "Woman Holding Veil" (65/145), 1969
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs "Leaf Woman" (65/150), 1969
$8,000
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Venus In Furs "Head" (67/150), 1969
$7,425
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$8,000
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs "Woman with Crutch" (47/150), 1969
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$8,000
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs "The Egrets" (69/150), 1969
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs "Piquant Buttocks" (85/150), 1969
$7,425
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$7,425
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs "The Torso" (53/150), 1969
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs "Woman on Horseback" (12/150), 1969
$7,425
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
$7,425
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs Vignettes "The Poet" (21/100), 1969
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$7,425
Salvador Dalí Venus in Furs Vignettes "The Suitor and the Queen" (77/100), 1969
RONSARD
In 1967, Salvador Dalí created a series of 18 etchings to illustrate Pierre de Ronsard's Les Amours de Cassandre, a collection of poems where themes of love, beauty, time, and mortality are intertwined
Ronsard, a French poet and humanist known as the "Prince of Poets," lived from 1524 to 1585 and inspired artists like Dalí, Emile Bernard, Henri Matisse, and Marie Laurencin Dalí’s etchings, including a playful portrait of Ronsard wearing a toga and laurel wreath, reflect the Renaissance memento mori theme found in Ronsard's work and emphasize the fleeting nature of life and the inevitability of death.
Dalí’s surrealistic style captures the poet's exploration of prose and underscores the enduring connection between poetry and visual art. As Ronsard himself noted in L'Art Poétique, "The ear is the judge of the structure of verse, while the eye is the judge of brushstrokes " While Ronsard predated the Surrealist movement, his poetry laid the groundwork for the imagination, symbolism, and wordplay that would later inspire artists like Dalí.
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$8,525
Salvador Dalí Ronsard "The Angler" (53/150), 1968
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
$8,525
Salvador Dalí Ronsard "Bicephalous" (12/150), 1968
Hand-colored etching
15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Ronsard "Couple with a Candle" (5/95), 1968
$9,845
Hand-colored etching 15" x 11"
Salvador Dalí Ronsard "Weeping Willow" (12/150), 1968
$8,525
DON JUAN
Dalí’s artistic engagement with the character of Don Juan reflects his fascination with the complexities of human desire, sexuality, and the conflict between personal freedom and selfdestruction Through his surrealist lens, Don Juan becomes not just a figure of lust, but also a tragic symbol of the contradictions of the human psyche. Whether through vibrant use of color or symbolic imagery, Dalí’s Don Juan serves as a metaphor for the duality of passion and despair, capturing the timeless tension at the heart of human experience.
Hand-colored etching
Salvador Dalí Don Juan "The Marquis" (29/100), 1970
26" x 20"
$10,945
Hand-colored etching
Salvador Dalí Don Juan “Le Banquet” (59/100), 1970
26" x 20"
$9,845
HANS BELLMER
German, 1902 - 1975
German-born artist, sculptor, and photographer, Hans Bellmer is best known for his unsettling and provocative Dolls series, which challenged conventions of beauty, sexuality, and power. Bellmer initially worked in advertising and graphic design before dedicating himself to art as a form of resistance against the rise of Nazi ideology, particularly its oppressive notions of physical perfection His work resonated with the Surrealists, who welcomed him into their circle after he fled to Paris in 1938.
Bellmer’s art, deeply rooted in psychoanalysis and the grotesque, remains influential for its bold critique of societal norms and its exploration of the darker dimensions of human desire. His work continues to provoke and inspire discussions on identity, objectification, and the human body Bellmer’s work has sold for six figures on the secondary market and belongs in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Tate, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Centre Pompidou.
22 04" x 14 96"
Hans Bellmer
The Three Sisters (26/100), 1967
Drypoint etching
$5,500
Memory (46/100), 1967
Drypoint etching
22 05" x 14 96"
$6,500
Hans Bellmer
22 05" x 14 96"
Hans Bellmer
Girl with Hoop (10/100), 1967
Drypoint etching
$5,500
ARIK BRAUER
Austrian, 1929 - 2021
One of Vienna’s most beloved modern artists, Arik Brauer is renowned for his captivating surrealistic paintings inspired by Jewish mystical traditions. Brauer was a founding member of the Viennese School of Fantastic Realism. Born in Vienna to Jewish parents, Brauer survived the Holocaust in hiding during World War II. His experiences deeply influenced his art, which is known for its intricate detail, vivid colors, and fantastical, surreal imagery.
Brauer’s paintings often explore themes of memory, mythology, and existential questions, blending dreamlike landscapes with allegorical figures. His style is characterized by meticulous craftsmanship, a whimsical imagination, and elements of both folk art and surrealism. In addition to his visual art, Brauer was a celebrated musician and poet, creating works that reflected his love for storytelling and his cultural heritage. Throughout his career, Brauer embraced a multidisciplinary approach, designing opera sets, creating mosaics, and engaging in social and political activism. His work has left a lasting impact on contemporary art, celebrated for its emotional depth, technical mastery, and universal themes of resilience and hope.
Erich Brauer
Fantastic Landscape (55/150), 1971
Lithograph
20" x 26"
$3,500
GIORGIO DE CHIRICO
Italian, 1888 - 1978
Giorgio de Chirico is best known as a co-founder of the Metaphysical Art movement that blossomed in Italy at the start of the 20th century. With disquieting, dreamlike paintings of low-lit town squares populated with marble statues, trains, mannequins, and extended shadows, he illustrated the mysteries of the mind. The artist deliberately distorted perspectives and reduced shapes into flattened planes De Chirico profoundly influenced the Surrealists including André Breton, Salvador Dalí, and René Magritte but while they took inspiration from Freudian psychoanalysis, de Chirico cited the philosophies of Friedrich Nietzsche and Arthur Schopenhauer as his great influences. Today, de Chirico’s work can be found in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Tate, and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, among others. On the secondary market, his canvases frequently command seven-figure prices
Giorgio de Chirico
L'Arcobaleno (54/90), 1969
Lithograph 27 50" x 19 75"
$7,000
Giorgio de Chirico
Sole et Mare (43/90), 1969
Lithograph 27 50" x 19 70"
$7,000
Giorgio de Chirico
Hebdomeros un Barca sue Camera (/EA), 1970
Lithograph
28 75" x 22 50"
$7,500
Giorgio de Chirico Gladiator (98/100), 1929
Lithograph 22" x 17 87"
$6,500
Giorgio de Chirico
Il Trovatore col Castello (/AP), 1969
Lithograph
27 50" x 19 75"
$7,500
LEONOR FINI
Argentine-Italian, 1907 - 1996
Leonor Fini’s mid-century paintings feature dreamlike scenes in which dominant women and passive men undercut traditional notions of sex and gender. Nude or heavily costumed, Fini’s characters embrace humor, eroticism, and mythological symbolism. The Argentine-born, Italian-raised artist was a friend and contemporary of key members of the Surrealist movement and featured in the Museum of Modern Art’s groundbreaking “Fantastic Art, Dada and Surrealism” exhibition in 1936. While her works embrace strangeness and the uncanny, Fini refused to label herself a Surrealist due to the group’s misogynist element Her work has been exhibited in New York, Rome, Paris, and London, and she participated in the Venice Biennale and São Paulo Biennial on multiple occasions. Today, her work sells for six figures on the secondary market and belongs to the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Tate Modern, and Centre Georges Pompidou, among other institutions. Along with her maximalist paintings, Fini is also known for her delicate drawings and prints.
Drypoint etching
26 50" x 20"
$4,500
Leonor Fini
The Council of Love "Untitled 18" (91/100), 1970
Drypoint etching
26 50" x 20"
Leonor Fini
The Council of Love "Untitled 6" (91/100), 1970
$5,500
Drypoint etching
26 50" x 20"
$4,500
Leonor Fini
The Council of Love "Untitled 12" (95/100), 1970
WASSILY KANDINSKY
Russian, 1866 - 1944
Wassily Kandinsky pioneered abstract painting in the early 20th century He believed that geometric forms, lines, and colors could express the inner life of the artist a theory quite evident in his own explosive paintings, which were often inspired by music. Today, Kandinsky’s canvases sell for tens of millions at auction and belong in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Tate, among other prestigious institutions.
Kandinsky played a central role in organizing Der Blaue Reiter, a group of avantgarde artists in Munich that included Franz Marc and Paul Klee. After returning to Russia during the Revolution, Kandinsky eventually moved to Germany, where he taught at the Bauhaus, further refining his theories on the spiritual in art. His writings, including Concerning the Spiritual in Art (1911), remain foundational to the understanding of abstraction. Kandinsky’s legacy endures as a groundbreaking artist who redefined the possibilities of visual expression.
Wassily Kandinsky
5 Figures (41/100), 1968
Woodcut
22 37" x 15 75"
$8,000
Wassily Kandinsky
The Blue Horseman (55/100), 1968
Woodcut
15 75" x 22 4"
$9,800
Wassily Kandinsky
Chalk and Soot (91/100), 1968
Woodcut 22 37" x 15 25"
$6,500
Wassily Kandinsky House and Horseman (55/100), 1968
Woodcut 22 37" x 15 75"
$6,500
MAN RAY
American, 1890 - 1976
Man Ray was a key figure of Dada and Surrealism, one of the few Americans associated with either movement. Born Emmanuel Radnitzky, the artist adopted his pseudonym in 1909 and while he also worked across painting, sculpture, video, and printmaking became renowned for his striking, sensual black-and-white photographs In the 1920s, Man Ray moved to Paris, becoming a central figure in the Surrealist movement. His groundbreaking rayographs camera-less photographic images created by placing objects directly on light-sensitive paper pushed the boundaries of traditional photography
At auction, his work has sold for seven figures, and his paintings have fetched particularly high prices. Man Ray is represented in the collections of such institutions as the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
in colors
Man Ray
Monument I (43/125), 1968
Lithograph
25 50" x 19 50"
$3,500
TRISTAN TZARA
Romanian, 1896 - 1963
Romanian avant-garde poet, critic, and theorist Tristan Tzara is best known as a founder and central figure of the Dada movement. His writings and manifestos, such as the Dada Manifesto (1918), helped define Dada’s anarchic rejection of traditional aesthetics and bourgeois culture. In the 1920s, Tzara moved to Paris where he became associated with the Surrealists and became an influential force within the movement.
Tzara’s work often challenged conventional forms through experimental poetry, collage, and performance, emphasizing spontaneity, absurdity, and provocation. His legacy endures as a revolutionary figure in 20th-century art and literature, shaping modernist and postmodernist thought. Today, Tzara’s work can be found in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the J. Paul Getty Museum, among others.
Tristan Tzara
Caricatures (57/70), c. 1969
Etching
15" x 22"
$3,500
West Chelsea Contemporary is much more than the typical gallery. Offering worldclass art in a dynamic, interactive setting WCC produces museum-quality exhibitions year-round with programming that is free and open to the public.
West Chelsea Contemporary’s collection includes artists influential to Pop Art, Street Art, Graffiti, Post-Graffiti and contemporary art as well as tastemakers of these movements. With a local, national, and international roster of represented artists, West Chelsea Contemporary situates artwork from the primary market alongside a highly curated selection of pieces from the secondary market This novel display of represented, emerging and mid-career artists alongside Blue Chip masters increases each artist’s exposure and serves to make connections between their work.
