Bez názvu (Stylizovaná figura)

Untitled (Stylised Figure)

A striking imaginative composition by Josef Istler depicting a stylised anthropomorphic figure or fantastic creature whose monumental head and elongated neck dominate almost the entire pictorial field. The motif exists somewhere between human, bird and apparition – precisely within the realm of imagination characteristic of Istler's work. The central figure rises from the lower edge like an unusual organic formation. Its sharply beak-like profile, prominent circular eye and fragmented structure give the creature an unsettling, almost prehistoric appearance. Two smaller vertical figures appear in the background, reinforcing the sense of a mysterious and deliberately ambiguous narrative. The colour is particularly powerful. Glowing reds, oranges and browns in the background contrast with acidic greens, yellows and deep burgundy tones within the principal figure. The result is a dramatic, almost visionary atmosphere in which the creature appears to emerge from a glowing, indeterminate space. The physical structure of the painting is equally important. Istler combines smoother areas of colour with pronounced relief-like applications of material, particularly around the head, neck and smaller figures. The surface consequently acquires an almost sculptural quality that changes with the incident light. This emphasis on painterly matter, texture and fantastic form is highly characteristic of the artist's visual language. Josef Istler (1919–2000) was an important representative of Czech imaginative and Surrealist art of the 20th century. Following private studies in Yugoslavia, he came into contact with Toyen and Karel Teige in Prague in the early 1940s and subsequently became associated with the Ra Group. His oeuvre encompasses phantoms, organic structures, apparitions and imaginary landscapes, alongside his distinctive development of abstraction. The present painting demonstrates particularly well Istler's ability to combine figuration with abstract structure. Although the viewer recognises an eye, a beak, a neck and distant figures, the image resists any single interpretation. This openness to imagination is one of the work's principal qualities. The work is signed “istler” in light paint lower right. Executed in oil on a rigid board/card support, it measures 50 × 60 cm and is presented in its original period frame. The lot is accompanied by a collection record described as an archival document, containing photographic documentation of the work, signature and reverse together with information concerning its history in a private collection. CURATOR'S TIP: This is an Istler one remembers. A huge eye, a beak, an elongated neck and two strange figures in the distance – yet it remains impossible to say exactly what kind of creature we are looking at. Viewed closely, the substantial texture of the paint is equally impressive, making the figure appear almost to emerge physically from the surface. It possesses precisely the mixture of imagination, mystery and subtle unease associated with Istler's work. FOR INVESTORS: Josef Istler is an established name within Czech post-war imaginative and Surrealist art, with a well-developed auction market for quality paintings. The present lot combines several attractive features: a highly characteristic imaginative subject, oil technique, a substantial 50 × 60 cm format, a prominent signature and accompanying archival documentation. With a starting price of CZK 25,000, it enters the auction at a particularly accessible level for an original signed Istler painting.