Bidspirit auction | Marcel Janco

Marcel Janco - Tempestuous Landscape. Oil on board, 50.2 × 34.9 cm. Signed and framed. A powerful and highly expressive work by Marcel Janco, one of the founding figures of both the Dada movement and early Israeli modern art. Rich in atmosphere and painterly energy, this exceptional painting presents a dramatic landscape charged with movement, emotion, and a profound sense of immediacy. The work comes from the distinguished collection of Amelia Wesselman of Beverly Hills, the renowned collector of Israeli art. According to the provenance accompanying the painting, Amelia acquired the work either from the historic Gordon Gallery in Tel Aviv or directly from the artist himself, although the precise source is no longer remembered. Regardless, the painting carries the prestige of having belonged to one of the most important private collections of Israeli art assembled abroad. The composition unfolds through vigorous and liberated brushstrokes that generate a feeling of turbulence and constant motion. Dark, wind-swept trees emerge from richly layered passages of paint, while intense blues, greens, and blacks combine to create a landscape infused with drama and emotional force. The scene appears suspended between observation and memory, transforming nature into an expression of inner experience. Janco's distinctive visual language is fully evident in this work. Throughout his career, he explored the fertile ground between abstraction and figuration, balancing spontaneous gesture with compositional structure. Rather than presenting the landscape as a faithful description of place, he sought to communicate its emotional resonance—its rhythm, energy, and psychological impact. As one of the founders of Dada in Zurich and later a central figure in the development of Israeli modernism, Marcel Janco brought a spirit of innovation and experimentation to everything he created. His landscapes, in particular, reveal his extraordinary ability to distill the essence of a scene into expressive form and color, allowing viewers to experience the landscape not merely as a setting, but as a living force. The work is signed by the artist and presented framed, enhancing its visual presence while preserving the immediacy of Janco's direct engagement with the painted surface. Medium: Oil on board Dimensions: 50.2 × 34.9 cm Subject: Expressive landscape Signature: Signed by the artist Condition: Very good Frame: Included Combining distinguished provenance, historical significance, and exceptional painterly vitality, Tempestuous Landscape stands as a compelling example of Marcel Janco's visionary approach to art. It is a work that captures both the physical energy of nature and the restless creative spirit of one of the great pioneers of twentieth-century art.