Beschreibung:

Property of an Important European Collector Cecily Brown Follow The Boy with a Thorn in his Side 2010 signed and dated 'cecily brown 2010' on the reverse oil on canvas 108.6 x 78.6 cm. (42 3/4 x 30 7/8 in.) Painted in 2010.
Provenance Gagosian Gallery, London Acquired from the above by the present owner Exhibited London, Royal Academy of Arts, The 242nd Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition , 14 June - 22 August 2010 Catalogue Essay “Behind the hatred there lies A murderous desire for love How can they look into my eyes And still they don't believe me?” -- The Smiths, The Boy With The Thorn In His Side Cecily Brown is a contemporary artist whose renown has continued to grow in recent years. Born in 1969 in London, Brown was raised in an artistically-inclined family and decided at the young age of three to become an artist. In 1995, the artist moved to New York where she has since established herself as a painter. Brown’s works wander between the semi-representational and the abstract, boldly exploring sensuality and human desire from an exquisite perspective that is quintessentially female. Painting with unbridled brushstrokes and bold impastos of rich and colourful hues, Brown creates forms that seem to vibrate like shifting shadows. While her works reflect the quality of artists such as Lucian Freud as well as Abstract Expressionists of the likes of Willem de Kooning Brown pursues a deeper and more thorough deconstruction of concrete forms. Her brilliant and varied use of colour further imbues her oeuvre with a feeling of tenderness and romanticism—perhaps reminiscent of Joan Mitchell’s work—but which at once clashes dramatically with her savage brushstrokes, creating a powerful visual impact that speaks of the artist’s strong personal style. Brown is also known for her clever naming of works, often drawing inspiration from titles of movies and pop songs. This shows the artist's intimate bond with contemporary subculture as well as her flare for sarcasm and humour. The title of the present lot, The Boy with a Thorn in His Side , was insightfully borrowed from The Smiths’ 1985 single, in which lead singer Morrissey expresses his despondency over being constantly misunderstood in the music world. This piece also invokes the famous Hellenistic sculpture, Boy with Thorn , allowing one to conclude that Brown draws inspiration not only from the contemporary world, but also the classical. Considering the cultural impetus behind the work—both classical and contemporary—the work exudes an air of emancipation and self-preservation, affording us a brief glimpse into the artist’s psyche. With wild and sweeping strokes, Brown drowns the edges of the canvas in a blackened brown and heavily drags a deep shade of maroon across the centre, contrasting it with a few dashes of vibrant peacock green. As if echoing the lyrics of the titular song, this painting reveals the artist’s internal turmoil and wounded soul, masked under an image of aloofness and pared-down pretense. The portrayal of the boy’s actual form is perhaps inconsequential; rather, what Brown has shown us is humanity’s deepest and most earnest desire for love and recognition. Read More Catalogue Essay 「在怨恨的背後 藏著充滿殺意的渴望去愛 他們直視著我的雙眼 但為何卻不相信我？」 --史密斯樂團《身旁帶刺的男孩》 塞西麗．布朗在西方當代藝術頗享盛名，這位女性藝術家在1969年出生於英國倫敦，自幼受到家族濃厚的藝術氣息薰陶，早在三歲就下定決心要成為藝術家。1995年定居紐約，自此駐留當地進行創作。她的作品遊走於半具象及抽象之間，以女性獨特的細膩觀點大膽地直探感官情色及人性慾望。 布朗往往以奔放不羈的筆觸，堆疊出濃厚的油彩肌理，拼湊出畫面裡猶如晃動影子般恍惚的形體，近似於抽象表現主義大師威廉．德庫寧及路西安．佛洛依德，然而她追求對於具體形象更進一步的解構。豐富紛呈的色彩結構為畫作平添幾許如女性前輩藝術家瓊•米丘般柔性與浪漫的藝術表達，與狂暴的筆觸形成一股耐人尋味的視覺衝突以及強烈的自我風格。 布朗在作品命名上更是一絕，酷愛借用電影或是流行歌曲名稱，不僅與當代次文化作出更緊密的結合，也常注入一些諷刺或幽默的意味。《身旁帶刺的男孩》這件作品，正巧妙借用了英倫樂團史密斯於1985年發行的單曲；主唱莫里西以慣有輕柔又憂鬱的唱腔，道出音樂界對他長期誤解的失望。除此之外，此作的名稱也讓人聯想起希臘化時代的著名雕塑《挑刺的少年》，布朗在此可能也不僅借鏡了當代，也追溯了古典。 一片晦暗的深黑褐色幾乎吞噬了畫面所有邊緣，布朗以如狂風掃過的筆觸，在中央拖曳著深紅厚重的油彩，加上幾筆孔雀綠的對比，揭示著歌詞在看似孤傲、輕描淡寫表面之下，所隱藏著鋪天蓋地而來如同淌血般沉重的受傷心理狀態。在此，男孩形貌的描繪已不重要，布朗帶著我們去直視人性中渴求被愛以及被肯定的殷切想望。 Read More