Fernand LÉGER (1881-1955) The Well, 1950 Watercolor... Lot 4

Fernand LÉGER (1881-1955) The Well, 1950 Watercolor and ink on paper. Monogrammed "FL", dated 50 and dedicated "à Croquez Amigo F.Léger" lower right. Size of drawing 27 x 20 cm - Size of sheet 33 x 24 cm Insulation and glued sheet, traces of minor soiling. Provenance: Jacques-Arnold Croquez Collection This watercolor is a preparation for the lithograph "Le Puits", created by Léger in 1951 and published in an edition of 75 copies. Collection Jacques-Arnold Croquez. Born into a large family of spinners from Lille, Jacques-Arnold Croquez trained as a lawyer, and from an early age was in contact with the artistic and intellectual circles of Flanders, whose differences he settled, such as James Ensor, whom he frequented during his vacations in Ostend, becoming his confidant and friend. - Robert, J.A. Croquez's brother, produced the catalog raisonné of Ensor's engraved works. He also met Félix Labisse, Albert Einstein and Fernand Léger, before defending Françoise Sagan and Kafka in the second half of his career. "As much as the man himself, the setting is welcoming and sympathetic. Here, a magnificent Ensor, flowers and shells, meets a Kisling and an enigmatic Labisse. Berthe Morisot stands side by side with Fernand Léger. A Marquet of great quality enchants () while a Fautrier shows off his dark tonalities", writes Jacques Goedorp about Jacques-Arnold Croquez, a great lawyer, defender and above all friend of artists, whose friendship we are now dispersing. Bibliography: Jacques Goedorp, "Un avocat ami des artistes. Jacques-Arnold Croquez", L'Information artistique, 7th year, n° 57, 1959, pp. 10-17 --- Robert Croquez, Ensor en son temps, Ostend 1970. The work appears in the online catalog of the Comité Léger under reference 201901-000165.