Jean-Paul Riopelle

Heffel Auction House Biography and Notes

This stunning painting was originally acquired from Jean-Paul Riopelle by one of Canada's most famous dealers, G. Blair Laing of Toronto. Riopelle's energetic paintings are intertwined with his dynamic life. As Laing writes in his memoirs, "Riopelle's energy spilled over into just about everything he did. He owned a boat and cruised her on the Mediterranean, liked fast cars, went on hunting expeditions for wild boar, and loved salmon fishing. At a moment's notice he would go off to the airport to catch the first plane to New York, without as much as a hand bag. He said he could buy anything he needed in New York...his dealer there, Pierre Matisse (Henri's son), gave him unlimited credit. Riopelle knew many of the artists and sculptors of the day, like Zao Wou-Ki and Alberto Giacometti, but in general he was a lone wolf. Yet at the same time he was always the generous host, ready to take you to dinner at one of the many good small restaurants he knew. He and Joan [Mitchell] frequented the Dome and Coupole, and at both places his stocky frame and tousled black hair were well-known. I never missed a chance of seeing him on my trips to Paris, even if it meant an evening of wandering through Montparnasse bistros to find him." Côte sauvage (D) displays Riopelle's classic palette knife technique, and expresses the passion for life that is the artist at his best.