Popular French painter (1883–1955), son of the renowned artist Suzanne Valadon, best known for his colorful cityscapes and views of the French countryside. Handwritten poem, in French, one lightly-lined page of grid paper, 8.25 x 10, dated March 28, 1928, Paris. Utrillo pens four stanzas of a poem entitled ‘Insomnia.’ An adjacent leaf bears the recipient’s address. In very good condition, with tiny holes along intersecting folds, overall wrinkling, a few tiny edge tears and separations along some of the folds, and scattered soiling. In very good condition, with intersecting folds, moderate overall wrinkling, a few tiny edge tears, and scattered soiling.
The Montmartre-born painter was best known for his cityscape scenes, a skill he acquired through his mother’s tutelage. As a teenager, she modeled for the likes of Renoir and Degas and learned their techniques, skills which she passed onto her 21 year son. Utrillo created with ease, bringing his surroundings to life in his lauded renditions. The year this poem was written, already a revered artist, he was awarded the Cross of the Legion d’honneur by the French government. But his recognized success did nothing to drive away his inner demons of mental instability and a propensity for the bottle, an issue he may be alluding to with the phrase “night demons.” His addiction, however, did little to hinder his creative genius, even if his was a perspective solely expressed through simplicity and repetition. This dramatically penned poem reveals another medium through which the tormented painter expressed his deepest seeded fears and battles. RRAuction COA.
