Lesser Ury (b. Birnbaum 1861, d. Berlin 1931)
Nocturnal scene from Café de la Paix, Paris. Signed and dated L. Ury Paris 1928. Oil on canvas laid down on cardboard. 24×33 cm.
Provenance: Acquired in Germany in 1930 by a Danish-German couple. Since then passed on within the present owner's family.
In March 1928 Lesser Ury returns to Paris for the first time since his years of study during the early 1880s. Here he paints life in the modern city, as it plays out at Café de la Paix after dark. With its outdoor terraces, the cafe, which still exists today, offers a magnificent view of the Boulevard des Capucines and Place de la Opera. Ury frames the motif from his own seat at the table in the foreground of the image. The bottle in the front is within a comfortable reach, and in this way the viewer is pulled in as a participant in the nocturnal scenario.
The air seems dense, just like before a cloudburst. The lights are reflected in the darkness and create an intense feeling of life, rhythm and nerve, where cars and pedestrians seem to merge with the surroundings. Only the gentleman at the table in front is in focus – while the world around him hurtles by rapidly, he is in a state of a temporary lull.
A work with a similar motif is in the collection of the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.
The painting has been shown to Dr. Sibylle Groß and is sold with a photo-certificate dated Berlin, 9 November 2016.
Condition report on request.
Please note: The item is subject to the Anti-Money Laundering Act. In the event of a hammer price of DKK 50,000 or more, including buyer’s premium, the buyer must submit a copy of a valid photo ID and proof of address in order to collect the item.
Modern paintings & prints, 7 December 2016