Andre Kertesz

ANDRE KERTESZ (1894-1985) Distortion No. 172, 1933 gelatin silver print titled in pencil (verso) image 8 7/8 x 6¾in. (22.5 x 17.1cm.) sheet 9 1/8 x 6 7/8in. (23.2 x 17.5cm.) Kertéz's series of Surrealist nude distortions, initiated in 1933, were developed from an idea conceived in 1930, when he took Carlo Rim, newly-appointed editor of Vu magazine, to Luna Park for a portrait session in the fun-fair's distorting mirrors. For the nudes, Kertész hired two models, a dance-hall girl and a younger girl from a wealthy family. The mirror was purchased from the Paris Marché aux Puces. The size of this print is consistent with other early prints included in: Phillips, Travis, and Naef, André Kertész of Paris and New York, Art Institute of Chicago, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Thames and Hudson, London, 1985, cat. nos. 102 (178x230mm.), 105 (257x170mm.), 104 (230x117mmmm), 107 (178x230mm.), 108 (238x178mm.), and 109 (238x166mm).

André Kertész (1894-1985) Looking at the Circus, Budapest, May 19 , 1920 Gelatin silver print, printed late 1970s, signed, titled, and dated in pencil on the verso. 9 3/4 x 7 3/4in Literature: André Kertész, The Manchester Collection, Jean Genoud, Lausanne, 1984, p. 25; Borhan, André Kertész, His Life and Work, Bullfinch Press, Boston, 1994, p. 81; Ducrot, André Kertész, Sixty Years of Photography, Grossman, New York, 1972, back cover and p. 33

KERTÉSZ, ANDRÉ (1894-1985) Du Bonnet, Paris. Silver print, 9 3/4x7 1/8 inches (24.8x18.1 cm.), with Kertész's signature and date, in pencil, on verso. 1934; printed before 1979 Estimate $3,500-4,500 Acquired directly from Kertész by Jill Quasha, in 1979; to the Collection of Phillip Periman, in 1992.

Lot 308 KERTESZ, ANDRE (1894-1985) [Circus. Budapest, 1914] . Gelatin silver print, later printing ( circa 1980). 9 3/4 x 7 5/8 inches (243 x 195 mm), signed in pencil by Kertesz on verso. Image 4 from the portfolio A Hungarian Memory . C Estimate $2,000-3,000 Any condition statement is given as a courtesy to a client, is only an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact. Doyle New York shall have no responsibility for any error or omission. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections or the effects of aging.

ANDRÉ KERTÉSZ (1894-1985) Chairs, the Medici Fountain, Jardin du Luxembourg, 1925 gelatin silver print on carte postale signed and annotated 'Paris' (in the margin) image: 3 1/8 x 3 5/8in. (8 x 9.2cm.) sheet: 3 3/8 x 5 1/8in. (8.5 x 13cm.) From André Kertész; to Michel Seuphor, Paris; with Houk Friedman Gallery, New York Each time André Kertész's shutter clicks I feel his heart beating; in the twin hole of his eye I see Pythagoras' sparkle. Henri Cartier-Bresson Paris vu par André Kertész, Éditions d'Histoire et d'Art/Librairie Plon, 1934, n.p.; Kertész, J'Aime Paris, The Viking Press, 1974, p. 107; Phillips, Travis and Naef, André Kertész: Of Paris and New York, Thames and Hudson, 1985, cat. no. 17, p. 134; Stranger to Paris: Au Sacre du Printemps Galerie, 1927, Jane Corkin Gallery, 1992, pp. 50-51; Borhan, André Kertész: His Life and Work, Little, Brown and Co., 1994, p. 133; Greenough et al., André Kertész, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C./Princeton University Press, 2005, cat. no. 39, p. 97, there dated 1926; Frizot and Wanaverbecq, André Kertész, Jeu de Paume/Yale University Press, 2011, p. 135, there dated 1926 André Kertész worked with carte-postale for only a brief period from 1923-1925. The circumstances under which Kertész moved to Paris may help to explain why he had such an affinity for this paper stock, manufactured with enough space for visual and written messages. When Kertész left his home in Budapest in 1925, he was already a committed photographer. With wages saved working as a clerk in the Stock Exchange, he was able to support himself for two years in Paris. Not only was carte-postale paper inexpensive and of reasonable quality, its format offered the photographer a host of radical design and printing options. Moreover, it may have been important for him to associate his emigré status with his art. There are several examples of Kertész printing his pictures and posting them home to Hungary. Kertész created his exquisite interplay of shadows in the Luxembourg Gardens not long after his arrival. He recalled '... the walk is romantic, the nature of a tourist's enchanted view...The chairs and their shadows have a sense of mystery -- the shadow shapes dance elegantly and confusingly, integrating the chairs and the path, the fence and the scattered leaves.' The image was exhibited at the gallery 'Au Sacre du Printemps' in 1927, Kertész's first solo exhibition in Paris. It was also included in the important Film und Foto exhibition in Stuttgart two years later. Vintage prints of this image on carte postale are extraordinarily rare.