AUGUSTE HERBIN
From the Collection Lahumière
curated by Sabine Schaschl and Evelyne Bucher
Museum Haus Konstruktiv
Selnaustrasse 25 - Zürich
4/6/2014 - 7/9/2014
Today, Auguste Herbin (b. 1882 in Quiévy, d. 1960 in Paris) is celebrated as a pioneer of non-figurative abstraction in France, even though his journey to that point was by all means hesitant. He progressed through various phases of modern painting; his oeuvre is characterized by a diversity of styles, ranging from impressionism and fauvism to cubism, orphism, purism and new objectivity, right through to radical geometric abstraction. In 1931, together with Georges Vantongerloo, Theo van Doesburg, Jean Hélion, Hans Arp and František Kupka, he founded the association Abstraction-Création, with which he published the journal of the same name from 1932 to 1936. In 1942/1943, the need for a self-imposed system of rules led to his "alphabet plastique", a geometric vocabulary of colored forms resembling letters and referring to Goethe's Theory of Colors, as well as to Rudolf Steiner's anthroposophical writings. Herbin's obstinately developed work brought him recognition on an international level: for instance, his works were shown between 1955 and 1972 at documenta I, II and V. He was represented in a large exhibition in 1979 at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, and in Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf, in 1987. Museum Haus Konstruktiv is exhibiting a distinct selection of works from the Parisian Lahumière collection.
In the Auguste Herbin solo exhibition, Museum Haus Konstruktiv presents an oeuvre that ties in with various art movements from the first half of the 20th century, and yet constantly demonstrates its originality. Herbin's career as an artist begins in 1899 when he is accepted at École des Beaux-Arts in Lille, where his first post-impressionist works, such as "Paysage nocturne à Lille", are produced. In 1901, he moves to Paris, where he visits influential exhibitions by Van Gogh, Gauguin and Seurat, and initially associates himself with fauvism. Cézanne's 1907 retrospective at Salon d’Automne, as well as the close proximity of his studio to those of Pablo Picasso and Juan Gris, encourage him to address cubism intensively. His first works inspired by cubism (and later by orphism and purism) appear in 1913. The step toward pure, sometimes geometric abstraction, around 1917, can initially be read as a logical consequence of cubism. Thus, it is all the more astonishing that Herbin abandons this first abstract phase in the years 1921 to 1926, in favor of figurative painting. Herbin is not the only one who returns to representation in the post-war era: this shift can also be observed in Fernand Léger and Pablo Picasso.
In retrospect, Herbin's figurative works are to be positioned in the context of new objectivity, which is stylistically characterized by clear, austere visual composition and a precise painting technique that is often reminiscent of the old masters. With urban and architectural views, such as "Paysage à la maison rouge" and "Le port" (both 1925), as well as the 1926 still life "Les concombres", this French artist represents the genres typical of this art movement. Just when the movement has made a name for itself in art history and become widespread, he takes his leave from this representational form of expression once and for all, and applies himself more to abstractly organic, often spiral-like forms, before eventually pursuing geometric abstraction once again. In 1931, together with Georges Vantongerloo, Theo van Doesburg, Jean Hélion, Hans Arp and František Kupka, he founds the Abstraction-Création movement, which publishes five issues of an eponymous journal from 1932 to 1936, and strives to combine various non-figurative painting movements.
In 1942/1943, as a result of his engagement with Goethe's Theory of Colors and Rudolf Steiner's anthroposophy (Herbin attends a seminar at the Goetheanum in Dornach, Switzerland, in 1939), Herbin develops the "alphabet plastique", which marks the start of his last creative period. This alphabet is based on Herbin's conviction that secret relationships exist between letters, musical sounds, colors and forms, such that words and tones can be expressed in colors and forms. With this in mind, he assigns a color, a musical sound, and one or more geometric forms to each letter: so according to his system of rules, the letter C, for example, is dark red, has the form of a circle or square, and corresponds to the musical tone syllables do and so. Herbin adheres to this self-defined composition system to the last. He paints pictures that visualize numbers, the names of months, weekdays and first names, but also terms and expressions loaded with meaning, such as "Vierge", "Homme et Femme", "Foetus", "Guerre et Paix" and "Abri". These terms are selected in a manner that is by no means arbitrary: it comes from a spiritual worldview, based on the teachings of Goethe and Steiner. In 1949, Herbin publishes his theoretical reflections in the written work "L'art non-figuratif non-objectif", which will take on great significance for a younger generation of artists.
Even though Herbin was a member of numerous art movements, he remained a loner to the very end. His works demonstrate an obstinate, individual, self-contained whole, such that Harald Szeemann exhibited them at documenta VI (1972) in the category "Individual Mythologies".
The solo show at Museum Haus Konstruktiv (the first in Switzerland for over fifty years) spans two floors and is filled with works from the collection belonging to the married couple Jean-Claude and Anne Lahumière. This collection is characterized not only by a first-class selection of large-format oil paintings, but also by the corresponding preliminary drawings and gouaches. In addition, the collection also includes a sketchbook of Herbin's, which documents, step by step, the creation of the works based on the "alphabet plastique".
A new edition of the 2010 Galerie Lahumière publication "Auguste Herbin", with a text by Serge Lemoine and a foreword by Sabine Schaschl, is being released to coincide with the exhibition.
Image: Auguste Herbin, Non, (Detail), 1951, Oil on canvas, © 2014, ProLitteris, Zürich.
From the Collection Lahumière
curated by Sabine Schaschl and Evelyne Bucher
Museum Haus Konstruktiv
Selnaustrasse 25 - Zürich
4/6/2014 - 7/9/2014
Today, Auguste Herbin (b. 1882 in Quiévy, d. 1960 in Paris) is celebrated as a pioneer of non-figurative abstraction in France, even though his journey to that point was by all means hesitant. He progressed through various phases of modern painting; his oeuvre is characterized by a diversity of styles, ranging from impressionism and fauvism to cubism, orphism, purism and new objectivity, right through to radical geometric abstraction. In 1931, together with Georges Vantongerloo, Theo van Doesburg, Jean Hélion, Hans Arp and František Kupka, he founded the association Abstraction-Création, with which he published the journal of the same name from 1932 to 1936. In 1942/1943, the need for a self-imposed system of rules led to his "alphabet plastique", a geometric vocabulary of colored forms resembling letters and referring to Goethe's Theory of Colors, as well as to Rudolf Steiner's anthroposophical writings. Herbin's obstinately developed work brought him recognition on an international level: for instance, his works were shown between 1955 and 1972 at documenta I, II and V. He was represented in a large exhibition in 1979 at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, and in Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf, in 1987. Museum Haus Konstruktiv is exhibiting a distinct selection of works from the Parisian Lahumière collection.
In the Auguste Herbin solo exhibition, Museum Haus Konstruktiv presents an oeuvre that ties in with various art movements from the first half of the 20th century, and yet constantly demonstrates its originality. Herbin's career as an artist begins in 1899 when he is accepted at École des Beaux-Arts in Lille, where his first post-impressionist works, such as "Paysage nocturne à Lille", are produced. In 1901, he moves to Paris, where he visits influential exhibitions by Van Gogh, Gauguin and Seurat, and initially associates himself with fauvism. Cézanne's 1907 retrospective at Salon d’Automne, as well as the close proximity of his studio to those of Pablo Picasso and Juan Gris, encourage him to address cubism intensively. His first works inspired by cubism (and later by orphism and purism) appear in 1913. The step toward pure, sometimes geometric abstraction, around 1917, can initially be read as a logical consequence of cubism. Thus, it is all the more astonishing that Herbin abandons this first abstract phase in the years 1921 to 1926, in favor of figurative painting. Herbin is not the only one who returns to representation in the post-war era: this shift can also be observed in Fernand Léger and Pablo Picasso.
In retrospect, Herbin's figurative works are to be positioned in the context of new objectivity, which is stylistically characterized by clear, austere visual composition and a precise painting technique that is often reminiscent of the old masters. With urban and architectural views, such as "Paysage à la maison rouge" and "Le port" (both 1925), as well as the 1926 still life "Les concombres", this French artist represents the genres typical of this art movement. Just when the movement has made a name for itself in art history and become widespread, he takes his leave from this representational form of expression once and for all, and applies himself more to abstractly organic, often spiral-like forms, before eventually pursuing geometric abstraction once again. In 1931, together with Georges Vantongerloo, Theo van Doesburg, Jean Hélion, Hans Arp and František Kupka, he founds the Abstraction-Création movement, which publishes five issues of an eponymous journal from 1932 to 1936, and strives to combine various non-figurative painting movements.
In 1942/1943, as a result of his engagement with Goethe's Theory of Colors and Rudolf Steiner's anthroposophy (Herbin attends a seminar at the Goetheanum in Dornach, Switzerland, in 1939), Herbin develops the "alphabet plastique", which marks the start of his last creative period. This alphabet is based on Herbin's conviction that secret relationships exist between letters, musical sounds, colors and forms, such that words and tones can be expressed in colors and forms. With this in mind, he assigns a color, a musical sound, and one or more geometric forms to each letter: so according to his system of rules, the letter C, for example, is dark red, has the form of a circle or square, and corresponds to the musical tone syllables do and so. Herbin adheres to this self-defined composition system to the last. He paints pictures that visualize numbers, the names of months, weekdays and first names, but also terms and expressions loaded with meaning, such as "Vierge", "Homme et Femme", "Foetus", "Guerre et Paix" and "Abri". These terms are selected in a manner that is by no means arbitrary: it comes from a spiritual worldview, based on the teachings of Goethe and Steiner. In 1949, Herbin publishes his theoretical reflections in the written work "L'art non-figuratif non-objectif", which will take on great significance for a younger generation of artists.
Even though Herbin was a member of numerous art movements, he remained a loner to the very end. His works demonstrate an obstinate, individual, self-contained whole, such that Harald Szeemann exhibited them at documenta VI (1972) in the category "Individual Mythologies".
The solo show at Museum Haus Konstruktiv (the first in Switzerland for over fifty years) spans two floors and is filled with works from the collection belonging to the married couple Jean-Claude and Anne Lahumière. This collection is characterized not only by a first-class selection of large-format oil paintings, but also by the corresponding preliminary drawings and gouaches. In addition, the collection also includes a sketchbook of Herbin's, which documents, step by step, the creation of the works based on the "alphabet plastique".
A new edition of the 2010 Galerie Lahumière publication "Auguste Herbin", with a text by Serge Lemoine and a foreword by Sabine Schaschl, is being released to coincide with the exhibition.
Image: Auguste Herbin, Non, (Detail), 1951, Oil on canvas, © 2014, ProLitteris, Zürich.
