It's no secret that parts of the Surrealist movement were deeply misogynistic: Women were often seen by many as muses, not members. This makes Weinstein Gallery's presentation of Jacqueline Lamba-the wife of the movement's founder André Breton, and a pivotal yet underrecognized artist-all the more vital. Lamba's career as a painter has long been overshadowed, partly due to her decision to stop exhibiting work, with her last major show held in Antibes, France, in 1967. Now, more than 50 years later, the San Francisco-based gallery presents a curated selection of exceptional works, spanning from 1937 to the 1980s.
The earliest work is perhaps the most notable: Pour la poche (1935), an assemblage made from pins, color threads, glass beads, and black silk, was described by the gallery's founder Rowland Weinstein as "not just her most important Surrealist object, [but] one of the most important Surrealist objects in existence." The presentation traces Lamba's journey through the dreamlike depictions of Paris during the Surrealist movement in the 1940s and '50s to vibrant abstract landscapes that defined her later career, such as Paris Panorama (1971), which align her legacy with Abstract Expressionist figures like Helen Frankenthaler and Joan Mitchell.
"She was a true artist," said Kendy Genovese, director of the gallery. "She never went backward. She painted what was influencing her at the time, and she absolutely had to paint, but she never painted for the market. She painted for herself."
Prices for Lamba's works range from $85,000 to $375,000, with the booth offering a rare opportunity to engage with the oeuvre of an artist who contributed profoundly to one of the 20th century's most enduring movements."