Auction Overview:
Larry Saphire, a Yale graduate and former student at the Sorbonne, pursued a lifelong passion for both art and writing. A rare figure in the art world, he was an art scholar, publisher, collector, and dealer with a focus on French modernism and surrealism. Under his imprint, The Blue Moon Press, he wrote and published several books, including the acclaimed catalogue raisonnés of Fernand Léger and André Masson, edited and translated into French by his first wife, Marie-Madeleine Saphire. He also published Judgements by Matta and two illustrated poetry books—one by Masson and another, Sea Bird Saga, by Wallace Putnam. Larry maintained close friendships with artists like Masson, Dalí, Miró, Nadia Léger (Fernand Leger’s wife), and Matta, and
represented American artists such as Putnam and photographer Consuelo Kanaga, while promoting artists like Hank Laventhol, Rita Simon, and Murray Tinkelman. A respected authority on 20th-century European art, he was a trusted advisor to collectors, dealers, museums, and auction houses. This auction reflects the shared belief of Larry and Marie-Madeleine that art is the soul of civilization.
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