- Nighttime, Enigma and Nostalgia
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A somber still-life abstraction, Nighttime, Enigma and Nostalgia has long been recognized as among Arshile Gorky’s masterpieces. The juxtaposition of textured and flat surfaces, and matte and glossy passages, imparts a great liveliness to the surface, creating a perfect counterbalance to the dark tones of the painting.
This work is the only painting and final piece in a series of more than 40 drawings Gorky produced from 1930 to 1934. The first sketches of the series were based on Paolo Uccello’s 15th-century panel The Profanation of the Host, echoing its fractured space and exaggerated perspective. As the series progressed, Gorky turned his attention to more concrete details, and in particular he chose to isolate and elaborate upon the biomorphic forms that dominated the left half of his drawings. This shift introduced a new and concentrated note of psychological intensity into Gorky’s work.
Nighttime, Enigma and Nostalgia is a summation painting, the definitive statement of all of Gorky's influences and concerns in the early 1930s. Cubism and Surrealism, as well as the artist’s wide knowledge of the history of art, are brilliantly assimilated into the work. His masterly handling of the different degrees of black, along with the poetic sobriety of the balanced forms, reflects Gorky’s interest in Spanish painting. The evidence of his hard work—scraping down and repainting—abounds in this example, testifying to the importance that Gorky assigned to it. In 1941, when asked to describe the subject of Nighttime, Enigma and Nostalgia, Gorky replied: “Wounded birds, poverty, and one whole week of rain.”
ProvenanceThe artist; Mr. and Mrs. M. Martin Janis, 1934; [Martha Jackson Gallery, c. 1955]; Estate of Arshile Gorky; Private collection; purchased by MFAH, 2005,
Exhibition History"Abstract and Surrealist Art in U.S.," Cincinnati Museum; Denver Art Museum; Seattle Art Museum; Santa Barbara Museum, California, 1944.
"Expressionism in American Painting," Albright Gallery, Buffalo, 1952.
"Gorky: Middle Period," Martha Jackson Gallery, New York, 1954.
"Gorky Paintings and Drawings," Tate Museum, London; Palais des Beax-Arts, Brussels; Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Netherlands, 1965.
"Murals Without Walls: Relating to Gorky's Newark Project," The Newark Museum, New Jersey, November 15, 1978–March 11, 1979.
"Murals Without Walls: Arshille Gorky's Aviation Murals Rediscovered," The American Federation of Arts, New York, July 1979–October 1980.
"Arshille Gorky 1904-1948, A Retrospective," The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, April 24–July 19,1981.
"Arshile Gorky, 1904-1948," Sala de Exposiciones de la Fundación Caja Pensiones, Madrid, October 17–December 23, 1989; The Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, January 19–March 25, 1990.
"Arshille Gorky: Paintings and Drawings 1929-1942," Gagosian Gallery, New York, October 27, 1998–January 9, 1999.
"Arshile Gorky: A Retrospective," Philadelphia Museum of Art, October 20, 2009–January 10, 2010; Tate Modern, London, February 10–May 3, 2010; The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, June 6–September 20, 2010.
"American Made: 250 Years of American Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston," The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, July 7, 2012–January 2, 2013.
"The Abstract Impulse: Selections from the Modern and Contemporary Collections," The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, February 3–May 5, 2013.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
980 Madison Avenue / New York NY 10021 / 2132 744 2313 tel / Gagosian Gallery / Arshile Gorky / " Nighttime, Enigma and Nostalgia", c. 1933-34 / Oil on canvas / 36 x 48 inches / Catalogue #25 / " Arshile Gorky: Paintings and Drawings 1929-1942" / October 27, 1998-January 9, 1999
The Arts Council of Great Britain / [illegible] / Exhibition Arshile Gorky 1904-1948 / Cat. no. 25 / Artist Arshile Gorky / Title Nighttime, enigma and nostalgia, / c. 1934 / Owner Martha Jackson Gallery, New York
SIT SIT TRANSPORTES INTERNACIONALES / GRAN VIA[illegible] MADRID / Autor ASHILE GORKY / Titulo "NIGHTTIME ENIGME NOSTALGIA" 1933-34 / Exposion "GORKY" / Prestador COSMOTRANS - Zurich
A & S FINE ARTS, INC / (212) 776-6350 / #2
PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART / Arshile Gorky: A Retrospective / Arshile Gorky / "Nighttime, Enigma, and Nostalgia", 1933-1934 / Oil on canvas, 36 x 48 in. / Lender: The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston / Gorky-54
[torn label] 1975/6 / artist Arshile Gorky / title Nighttime Enigma and Nostalgia / owner Etablissement Lesanfond of Vaduz, Liechtenstein
Museum Boymans van Beuningen / Exhibition ARSHILE GORKY 1965 / Collection Martha Jackson Gallery, New York / Artist Arshile Gorky / Nighttime, enigma and nostalgia, 1934
[torn slip of paper with inscriptions in ink: S19 and marker: 2(circled and upside down)]
P. 31 SPECIAL PACKING / NO CORNERS / AFA #3
3 / Gorky title: / NIGHTTIME, ENIGMA AND / NOSTALGIA
exhibition title: exhibition no: / MURALS WITHOUT WALLS / Arshile Gorky's Aviation Murals Rediscovered 78-16 / July 1979 - October 1980 / THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF ARTS. 41 East 65th Street, New York 10021
THE SOLOMON R. GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM / Loan = 941,80 Catalog = 43 / Exhibition GORKY X / Lender Private Collection
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
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