Leonora Carrington’s monumental sculpture ‘La Grande Dame’ heads to Sotheby’s auction, expected to set records with $5-7M estimate.
Leonora Carrington‘s most significant sculptural work, ‘La Grande Dame (The Cat Woman)’, is poised to make history at Sotheby’s Modern Evening Sale this November.
This extraordinary piece, which stands as a testament to the artist’s fascination with mysticism and feminine power, arrives at auction after a three-decade absence from the market, carrying an estimate of $5-7 million.
A Masterpiece Unveiled
The towering sculpture, created in 1951, represents the pinnacle of Leonora Carrington’s sculptural achievements. Standing nearly 80 inches tall, ‘La Grande Dame’ emerged during a period of intense creativity in the artist’s life when she was deeply immersed in occult studies alongside fellow artists Remedios Varo and Kati Horna in Mexico City.
The work’s creation involved a remarkable collaboration with José Horna, a skilled woodworker and husband of Kati Horna, who helped bring Carrington’s otherworldly vision into three-dimensional form.
The sculpture’s surface serves as a canvas for Leonora Carrington‘s distinctive narrative style, featuring intricate painted vignettes that weave together symbols from various mythological traditions.
The most striking of these appears on the figure’s chest, where a goose-headed woman presents an egg to a diminutive figure below,a motif that speaks to themes of feminine creation and renewal that pervaded Carrington’s work.
The Rising Value of Women Surrealists
The upcoming sale of ‘La Grande Dame’ follows a remarkable trajectory in Leonora Carrington’s market value. Earlier this year, her painting ‘Les Distractions de Dagobert’ achieved an astounding $28.5 million at Sotheby’s, dramatically surpassing her previous auction record of $3.3 million set just two years prior.
This meteoric rise reflects a broader market correction, as works by female Surrealists finally command prices commensurate with their male counterparts.
Julian Dawes, Sotheby’s Head of Impressionist & Modern Art, Americas, emphasises the work’s significance: “La Grande Dame is a remarkable expression of Leonora Carrington’s mythical imagination, offering fresh insight into her creative vision as an artist. Majestic in scale and poetic in form, the work marks the triumphant height of Leonora Carrington’s sculptural production, embodying the artist’s all-pervasive fascination with fantasy.”
A Synthesis of Global Mythologies
‘La Grande Dame’ demonstrates Leonora Carrington’s masterful ability to synthesise diverse cultural references. The sculpture draws inspiration from ancient Egyptian imagery, particularly the goddess Bastet while incorporating elements from Celtic mythology and Mexican folklore.
The work’s geometric stylisation and commanding presence echo ancient Egyptian statuary, while its detailed narrative elements reflect Carrington’s distinctive Surrealist vocabulary.
The sculpture’s reverse side reveals additional layers of symbolism, featuring a wolf-like goddess cradling a dandelion spirit, with the recurring motif of the egg suspended between them. This careful attention to detail and symbolic depth reflects Carrington’s lifelong engagement with mystical traditions and her unique ability to translate them into contemporary art forms.
From Lancashire to Mexico City: Leonora Carrington’s Artistic Journey
Born in 1917 to an affluent Catholic family in Lancashire, Carrington’s early life was shaped by the collision between strict social expectations and the enchanting world of Irish folklore introduced by her grandmother.
Her artistic journey took her from London to Paris, where she became an integral part of the Surrealist movement, and eventually to Mexico City, which became her permanent home and the setting for her most productive years.
In Mexico, Carrington found herself at the intersection of various artistic currents, from the politically charged muralist movement to the fantasy-infused works of artists like Frida Kahlo.
The city’s vibrant cultural scene and the presence of fellow European émigrés created an environment where her unique vision could flourish, leading to works like ‘La Grande Dame’ that seamlessly blend multiple cultural traditions.
A Legacy of Imagination and Empowerment
The provenance of ‘La Grande Dame’ includes the distinguished collection of Edward James, a renowned patron of Surrealist art. The sculpture’s exhibition history reads like a who’s who of major art institutions, including showings at the Tate Modern, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection.
As ‘La Grande Dame’ prepares to find a new home, it stands as a powerful symbol of Leonora Carrington’s enduring influence on 20th-century art. The sculpture embodies not only her technical mastery and imaginative power but also her role in expanding the possibilities for women artists in the modernist tradition.
Images: Sotheby’s
