PARIS.- From the 1970s to the 21st century, Yiannis Moralis (1916-2009) consistently adhered to the principles of geometric abstraction, exploring its mystical pathways and taking his place among its leading exponents. Five paintings of this Greek master lead Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr Greek Sale in Paris on Wednesday 22 November.

Head of the Greek Sale, Anastasia Orfanidou, said: “It’s always a pleasure to show Moralis works to the market and our rediscovery of an important piece by Lytras is particularly interesting. These works will be exhibited in Athens from 8-10 November 2023 then in Paris from 20-22 November.”

The Greek Sale is a collaborative sale put together by Bonhams in London and Paris and its associates in Athens, Art Expertise whose Director, Terpsichore Angelopoulou, said: “Amassing such a great collection and discovering hidden gems and missing links in the history of Greek Art was a challenging and fascinating experience. We keep responding to the demands and expectations of collectors in Greece and abroad”.

Highlighted by the poetry and eroticism of the curved line, La Romance by Yiannis Moralis (estimate: €180,000-250,000) reiterates the artist's long preoccupation not only with the suggestively rendered human form, but also with the musical resonance generated by the combination of varied types, shapes and colours. The stark juxtaposition of the female figure with the dark male form in the foreground—which ingeniously alludes to Attic black-figure vase painting—charges the composition with a vibrant rhythm and endows it with a classical sense of structure and balance.

Another highlight of the sale includes an earlier work by Yiannis Moralis Printemps (Spring), egg tempera on cardboard dated 1963-65, which comes from a Greek private collection (estimate: €120,000-180,000). Commenting on the work, Moralis wrote: "It's the spring. It's this air one feels all around, which I experienced when going to the island of Aegina just before Easter, during Holy Week ... On the left is the church we'd go to, to listen to the twelve gospels, with the girl that stoops to kiss the bier of Christ." The architectural motifs that echo fragments of an ancient Greek temple or a neoclassical Athenian mansion, the shallow compositional depth, reminiscent of sculptural relief, and the austerity of the horizontal and vertical lines set up a perfectly balanced geometric edifice from which the human form emerges.

Jeune fille au bain (Girl washing her hair) by Nikiforos Lytras (1832-1904) is a recently rediscovered painting. From the private collection of W. Robert Morgan (rancher, lawyer, art patron, and founder of the Triton Museum of Art in Santa Clara, California), then by familial descent to the previous owner, this oil on canvas is estimated at €80,000-120,000. Initially attributed to Gerome, then to the circle of Gerome, it has now been reattributed to Lytras thanks to Bonhams’ specialists.

This painting illustrates the artist's adherence to traditions deeply rooted in Greek folk culture. Often referred to as the “Patriarch of Modern Greek painting”, Lytras enjoyed an illustrious career, his works attracting a dedicated and ever-growing clientele including some of the period’s most prominent collectors. Held in the hands of private collections, many of his works remain unlocated, known only through old photographs. Jeune fille au bain evokes an archaic simplicity. The scene is endowed with a solemn grandeur accentuated by a limited palette of subdued hues that perfectly match the austerity of the setting. Its composition adheres to the firm compositional structure championed by the masters of the Munich School, especially Karl von Piloty, under whom the artist studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts.

Other highlights of the sale include:

• Constantinos Parthenis (1878-1967), Alentours de l'Acropole (Around the Acropolis), 1909 (Estimate: €100,000-150,000). Parthenis radically simplified nature to concentrate on chromatic and painterly matters. He treats the monument not as a lifeless relic of ancient glory but as a living organism, a form of eternity constantly reborn in the present. In his hands the Parthenon becomes a verse of lyric poetry.

• Yannis Gaïtis (1923-1984), Air France Tout Bleu, 1971 (Estimate: €20,000-30,000)

• Chryssa (Vardea) (1933-2013), New York City Scape (41), 1972, sculpture with neon lights in plexiglass (Estimate: €40,000-60,000). Chryssa's New York cityscapes from the early 1970s rank among her most extraordinary works, featuring majestic forms and oscillating patterns that capture the brilliance and throbbing energy of the modern metropolis. The glamorous illusion of the curving electrified neon tubes and the visible technology of circuitry enhance each other's impact, acting together to reveal the artistic process. Moreover, the timed lapses of light add another dimension to the game of illusionism, compelling the viewer to experience the work as both absence and presence.

The Greek Sale is a collaborative sale put together by Bonhams in London and its associates in Athens, Art Expertise.

Selected highlights from the sale will be on preview in Athens at Amalias 36, Amalias Ave. 10558 from 8-10 November from 11 am to 8 pm and the entire sale will be available to view at Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr, 6 Avenue Hoche on 18 November from 2pm to 6pm and from 20-22 November from 10am to 6pm.