Please find details of Composition E by Max Papart
Max Papart’s Composition E (16×20 cm, mixed media on wood) captures the viewer — not just with its visual geometry, but with its layered context. The circle — a timeless symbol — is sliced and layered with textured surfaces, cryptic scripts, and rhythmic color fields. Yet despite the fragmentation, the painting feels whole. That’s the magic of Papart.
A French Master with a Global Vision
Born in 1911 in Marseille, Papart defied his mother’s wishes to raise chickens and instead pursued art. In 1935, he moved to Paris and enrolled at the École du Louvre. There, he developed the foundations of what would become his unmistakable visual language.
Throughout his life, Papart combined the structured elegance of Cubism with the irreverent playfulness of Pop Art. However, his style is not easy to pin down. It is abstract yet familiar, surreal yet grounded.
Layers of Meaning and Material
Composition E shows Papart at his best. The piece is intimate in scale but expansive in symbolism. The surface blends soft blue-grey tones with bold red, ochre, and deep teal. Text appears—half-legible, as though pulled from a forgotten manuscript. The forms hint at musical instruments, maps, or sacred architecture.
Papart was a master printmaker, but here, he goes beyond traditional etching. He often used techniques like carborundum and aquatint, along with textured handmade paper. These allowed him to sculpt the image, not just draw it. As a result, his works become tactile, almost archaeological.
A Life of Resistance and Recognition
During World War II, Papart returned to Marseille and joined the French Resistance. He later helped liberate the town — a heroic chapter that adds even more resonance to his work. After the war, he gained critical acclaim and exhibited worldwide: Berlin, New York, Rome, Brussels, Geneva, and Mexico.
His 1971 retrospective at the Musée Saint-Ouen cemented his place among the leading French modernists. And even today, his works — like Composition E — continue to challenge and inspire.
Our Gallery
In Composition E, he reminds us that memory is layered, history is fractured, and beauty often lives between the lines. This is a rare opportunity to acquire an original work by Max Papart — a piece that embodies both his technical mastery and poetic abstraction. Signed in the bottom right corner.
Kings Gallery is a leading fine art gallery established in Jerusalem in 1995. Particularly, we strive to collect and sell the highest quality historic and contemporary Israeli and International art. The gallery specializes primarily in artists from the early period of the 1920’s. Besides, Kings Gallery features leading up-and-coming young artists who will definitely be prominent names in the next few years.
