Eesti kunsti oksjonid

Oil on cardboard. 1981.
Signature: L Saarts -81 / L Saarts 81 Telekast nähtud Rembrandti ateljees

This ambiguous painting by Tartu’s most significant late Palladian Lembit Saarts (1924-2016) raises more questions than the annotation here would allow and as a conceptual work of art, it holds an important place in the art world of the time. The late 1980s – early 1990s were a time of radical experiments in our art, a creative time of disintegration and questioning of old systems and the search for new possibilities.

The painting demonstrates the artist’s memory and technical level, the integrity of the composition and the beauty of color, while the female nude painted from behind is stylistically more reminiscent of some of Ingres’ works than Rembrandt’s, with which the inscription on the back of the painting hints at a connection. Perhaps Saarts wanted to create a little intrigue and deliberately confuse the viewer?

Text: Harry Liivrand