When Serge Poliakoff (1900-1969) arrived in Paris in 1923, he was a young Russian emigrant fleeing the Revolution. A musician, his guitar was his major source of income. From 1929 onwards, he started dedicating his time to painting, immersing himself in the artistic scene of the time and becoming friends with Kandinsky, Sonia & Robert Delaunay and Franz Meyer. In the 1930’s, his first group exhibitions were held at the Galerie Denise-René. In 1946 he joined the avant-garde of abstract painting. 1952 was a decisive year for Poliakoff: exhibitions multiplied, American museums started acquiring his works and, thanks to a contract with the Galerie Bing, he started making a living from his art. In our Composition abstraite, painted this prolific year, plans pile up in a mosaic where shapes and colours are intertwined. By grinding his own pigments which he applied in layers, the artist created this unique and vibrant texture, enlightening the whole canvas. In 2013, the Musée d’Art moderne de la Ville de Paris organised a major solo exhibition of Poliakoff’s work. He was one of the most representative painter of the post-war generation which gave Paris its school of abstraction.

Galerie Louis Carré, Paris (inv. 7578)
M. Eknayan, Paris
Private Collection, Lausanne
Private Collection, Paris