Balthus

(French, 1908–2001)

Balthus was a French painter known for his dreamlike depictions of eroticized pubescent girls. One of his best-known paintings La Leçon de guitar (The Guitar Lesson) (1934), portrays a woman and young girl in the midst of a music lesson, with the woman’s breast exposed and the young girl’s skirt above her waist. “I always feel the desire to look for the extraordinary in ordinary things; to suggest, not to impose, to leave always a slight touch of mystery in my paintings,” he once said. Born Balthasar Klossowski on February 29, 1908 in Paris, France to an artistic family, exposed to the Parisian cultural and artistic elite at a young age. He and his brother Pierre Klossowski befriended many prominent figures of the 1920s, including Pablo Picasso, Alberto Giacometti, and Georges Bataille. During the period before and after World War II, Balthus moved from France, settling in Rome in 1964, where he befriended Federico Fellini. He later moved to Switzerland with his young Japanese wife the artist Setsuko Ideta in 1977. The artist died in Rossinière, Switzerland on February 18, 2001. Today, Balthus’s work can be found in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Tate Gallery in London, and the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, among others.

Balthus News

Artnet News Pro

By the Numbers: A Breakdown of Results From Sotheby's Modern Art Evening Sale, November 2023

by Eileen Kinsella
By the Numbers: A Breakdown of Results From Sotheby's Modern Art Evening Sale, November 2023
Auctions

A Balthus Painting Deaccessioned by the Art Institute of Chicago Heads to Auction at Sotheby’s, Where It Could Fetch $18 Million

by Adam Schrader
A Balthus Painting Deaccessioned by the Art Institute of Chicago Heads to Auction at Sotheby’s, Where It Could Fetch $18 Million
Auctions

A Balthus Painting From the Same Series That Drew Protests at the Met Is Expected to Fetch as Much as $18 Million at Auction

by Taylor Dafoe
A Balthus Painting From the Same Series That Drew Protests at the Met Is Expected to Fetch as Much as $18 Million at Auction

Balthus Artworks

Artworks for Sale &
Auction Results

Balthus (1,600 results)
Etude pour

Balthus

Etude pour "Jeune fille assoupie" - 1954, 1954

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Dessin préparatoire pour

Balthus

Dessin préparatoire pour "Etude pour Passage du...

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Essai de pointillisme - circa 1954-1956, 1954–1956

Balthus

Essai de pointillisme - circa 1954-1956, 1954–1956

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Etude pour un paysage - 1959, 1959

Balthus

Etude pour un paysage - 1959, 1959

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Etude pour

Balthus

Etude pour "Petit Nu à la coiffeuse" - 1950, 1950

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Portrait de Frédérique - 1949, 1949

Balthus

Portrait de Frédérique - 1949, 1949

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Jeune fille lisant (Frédérique) - 1948, 1948

Balthus

Jeune fille lisant (Frédérique) - 1948, 1948

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Etude pour

Balthus

Etude pour "Nu au chat" - 1948, 1948

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Etude pour

Balthus

Etude pour "Le Chat de la Méditerranée" - 1947, 1947

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Etude pour

Balthus

Etude pour "La Patience" - 1943, 1943

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Etude pour

Balthus

Etude pour "Les enfants Blanchard" - 1937, 1937

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Etude pour

Balthus

Etude pour "La Caserne

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Esquisse pour

Balthus

Esquisse pour "Le Spahi et son cheval" - 1949, 1949

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Portrait de Despériez - 1931, 1931

Balthus

Portrait de Despériez - 1931, 1931

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Fillette jouant au diabolo - 1925, 1925

Balthus

Fillette jouant au diabolo - 1925, 1925

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Portrait d'une actrice - 1937, 1937

Balthus

Portrait d'une actrice - 1937, 1937

Sale Date: December 8, 2020

Auction Closed

Dessins (bk w/6 works, folio), 1994

Balthus

Dessins (bk w/6 works, folio), 1994

Sale Date: November 5, 2020

Auction Closed

Nature morte, 1926–1930

Balthus

Nature morte, 1926–1930

Sale Date: October 23, 2020

Auction Closed

室内の女性Femme a l'interieur

Balthus

室内の女性Femme a l'interieur

Sale Date: October 17, 2020

Auction Closed

Tobie et l'Ange, 1976

Balthus

Tobie et l'Ange, 1976

Sale Date: September 23, 2020

Auction Closed

年轻女孩, 1994

Balthus

年轻女孩, 1994

Sale Date: July 20, 2020

Auction Closed

NU À LA VESTE ROSE, 1927

Balthus

NU À LA VESTE ROSE, 1927

Sale Date: June 18, 2020

Auction Closed

Portrait de Laurence B., 1947

Balthus

Portrait de Laurence B., 1947

Sale Date: June 3, 2020

Auction Closed

Untitled

Balthus

Untitled

Sale Date: March 25, 2020

Auction Closed

English (US)

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