Anton Henning (b. 1964)
Interior No. 51
oil on canvas
71⅞ x 84in. (182.7 x 213.5cm.)
Painted in 1999-2000

PROVENANCE

Galerie Eugen Lendl, Graz.
Private Collection (acquired from the above in 2002).
Anon. sale, Sotheby's London, 2 July 2008, lot 361.
Haunch of Venison, London.

Δ λ Please see our Conditions of Sale for definitions of cataloguing symbols.

SPECIALIST NOTES

Henning’s oeuvre takes on an unmistakable flare, where colours and shapes, accompanied by swirling contours, coined ‘Hennlings’, create playful and animated compositions. Enveloped in colour, figurative motifs and gestural abstractions, his works come together as ostentatious displays of colliding elements.

Henning takes inspiration from the modernist avant-gardes such as Francis Picabia, Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso. It is however impossible to confine the artist to a certain artistic movement. While Henning observes the creative elements of his precedents, his creation exudes no remnants of other masters. The artist bends traditional ways of representation to create his own iconoclastic language. The modernist elements become only tools for his expression, which the artist completely reclaims as his own in his creations.

Henning often plays with multiple dimensions in his works by pitting contrasting tones and imagery against one another. These elements coalesce into striking displays that exude a profound sense of complexity. Portraits, sculptures, nude drawings and abstract designs are only a few amongst the diverse subjects with which the artist engages. His figures often exude anamorphism as they dance in moving contours. Under the artist’s brush, even a simple furniture piece can transform into something that assumes life and spirit.

Henning takes a keen interest in the design of space and interiors. His works of Interieur are such abstract configurations where figures and meandering lines are allowed to explore the space of a canvas. The artist has ventured into exploring his craft with larger physical space in recent years with his grand installations, often referred to as ‘Salons’. Here Henning combines paintings, sculptures and furniture pieces of his own creation into a single, unified display. Through these spaces, Henning opens up yet another channel through which we are invited to experience his creative world.

Henning’s works are held in a number of notable permanent collections such as the Museum fur Modern Kunst and the Stadel Museum in Frankfurt am Main, the Essl Museum in Austria, The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles and the Menil Collection, Houston.

-