SwissArtGallery · Documented identity

Antoni Tàpies

Born : 1923Died : 2012Documented citizenships : Spain

A painter, sculptor, essayist and art theorist working in Catalan, Antoni Tàpies developed a practice in which material plays a role equal to that of the painterly gesture. After his early beginnings, he turned towards abstraction and introduced non-academic materials into his works, including plant matter and fragments of earth or stone. From 1953, he combined paint with clay and marble powder, as well as torn paper, rope and rags. Glue and pigment, sometimes mixed with sand, dust or earth, form a material that he works through collage, impasto, scratching and tearing. The cross, stains, graffiti and rectangular forms recur in this visual language. These recurring motifs coexist with the irregularities and textures produced by the materials and processes he uses.

He took drawing classes at the Acadèmia Valls in 1943, then devoted himself to painting from 1946. In 1948, he took part for the first time in the Saló d’Octubre in Barcelona; his first solo exhibition was held in 1950 at the Galerías Layetanas in the same city. He took part in the Venice Biennale in 1952. Gris et Vert, dated 1957, is cited among the works held at the Tate Gallery in London.

His exhibition history includes solo presentations at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1992 and at the Galerie nationale du Jeu de Paume in Paris in 1994. In 2004, solo exhibitions are recorded at MACBA in Barcelona and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid. His work also extended to the artist’s book: he illustrated more than thirty. In 2000, he created the official poster for the French Open tennis tournament. Elected a member of the Academy of Arts in Berlin in 1979, he thus brought together artistic practice, written reflection and interventions in different formats.

This profile brings together identity references for Antoni Tàpies and paintings, drawings and works on paper documented in auction catalogues.

40 references are documented at Artcurial Beurret Bailly Widmer, Kornfeld, Genève Enchères, Schuler, Piguet, Germann, Ketterer, Lempertz. Each record links to its source; the amounts are not a general valuation of the artist’s work.

Works recorded at auction

Photograph : Schuler · Enlarge image ↗

Schuler · Lot 3161

La pierre trouant le sens mais, plus tard, le ciel au fond de l'entaille

Pencil

Original catalogue wording

La pierre trouant le sens mais, plus tard, le ciel au fond de l'entaille
Bleistift

Catalogue period : 2026-09-11

Published result : 1300 CHF

Fees not specified in the available data

Estimate : CHF 800–1400

Antoni Tàpies

Works recorded at auction

La pierre trouant le sens mais, plus tard, le ciel au fond de l'entaille

Roig sobre negre

Morning Nocturne Series No. 6

"Four black squares and 81"

Untitled, 1980

White, rope and triangle

Peu de Set

Croix positive et négative, 1975

Dues creus, 1980

La main jaune, 1973

Ohne Titel, um 1965

Untitled

Ohne Titel, 1993

Forma de Trapezi (52)

Door and Colors

Graphismes blancs

Black and Threads on Piece of Cardboard

Cuadrado, Triángulo y Puntos, 1975

Paper with two marks

Corrugated Cardboard and Graphic Signs

Grafismes sobre fons vermells

Image IV. Black Strokes above Sign

Kunst kontra Ästhetik

Die Praxis der Kunst

Parterre du jardin de Batafra

Urpa

Esprai negre V

Carrilage, also titled ‘Flascó’. 1987.

Huellas sobre materia blanca, 1964

Forme marron sur toile blanche, 1965

Quatre barres, 1974

Cartó amb xifres, 1975

Façana, 1977

Paper with two marks

Composiciò, 1977

Aqueuy, 1985

Sin título

"Composition",

Mouth",

"Four Red Crosses",

Sources and references

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