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)
Double étude de tête (Antoinette), 1942

Balthus

Double étude de tête (Antoinette), 1942

Sale Date: December 6, 2023

Auction Closed

Etude pour

Balthus

Etude pour " Les Beaux Jours ", 1944

Sale Date: December 6, 2023

Auction Closed

Portrait de Frédérique 弗雷德里克的肖像, 1954

Balthus

Portrait de Frédérique 弗雷德里克的肖像, 1954

Sale Date: November 23, 2023

Auction Closed

La Patience, 1943

Balthus

La Patience, 1943

Sale Date: November 14, 2023

Auction Closed

Fleurs, 1963

Balthus

Fleurs, 1963

Sale Date: November 14, 2023

Auction Closed

La Ferme à Chassy (Le Printemps), 1958

Balthus

La Ferme à Chassy (Le Printemps), 1958

Sale Date: November 14, 2023

Auction Closed

Jeune fille assise, 1978

Balthus

Jeune fille assise, 1978

Sale Date: October 19, 2023

Auction Closed

Étude pour ‘Le Peintre et son modèle’, 1977

Balthus

Étude pour ‘Le Peintre et son modèle’, 1977

Sale Date: October 13, 2023

Auction Closed

Étude pour 'Femme couchée', 1948

Balthus

Étude pour 'Femme couchée', 1948

Sale Date: October 19, 2023

Auction Closed

Fruits dans une assiette, 1962–1963

Balthus

Fruits dans une assiette, 1962–1963

Sale Date: July 19, 2023

Auction Closed

Double étude de nu, 1930

Balthus

Double étude de nu, 1930

Sale Date: June 20, 2023

Auction Closed

Balthus

"Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Cosi fan tutte", 2001

Sale Date: June 13, 2023

Auction Closed

Katia endormie, 1974

Balthus

Katia endormie, 1974

Sale Date: June 8, 2023

Auction Closed

Paysage de Monte Calvello, 1970

Balthus

Paysage de Monte Calvello, 1970

Sale Date: June 9, 2023

Auction Closed

Portrait de Antonin Artaud, 1980

Balthus

Portrait de Antonin Artaud, 1980

Sale Date: June 7, 2023

Auction Closed

L’enfant gourmand, 1940

Balthus

L’enfant gourmand, 1940

Sale Date: April 20, 2023

Auction Closed

Etude pour les trois soeurs, 1953

Balthus

Etude pour les trois soeurs, 1953

Sale Date: March 29, 2023

Auction Closed

Nu, 1953

Balthus

Nu, 1953

Sale Date: April 4, 2023

Auction Closed

Portrait de Laurence B., 1949

Balthus

Portrait de Laurence B., 1949

Sale Date: April 5, 2023

Auction Closed

Étude de nu, 1957

Balthus

Étude de nu, 1957

Sale Date: April 5, 2023

Auction Closed

BALTHASAR KLOSSOWSKI DE ROLA (BALTHUS) JEUNE , 1994

Balthus

BALTHASAR KLOSSOWSKI DE ROLA (BALTHUS) JEUNE , 1994

Sale Date: March 23, 2023

Auction Closed

BALTHASAR KLOSSOWSKI DE ROLA (BALTHUS) COSÌ..., 2000

Balthus

BALTHASAR KLOSSOWSKI DE ROLA (BALTHUS) COSÌ..., 2000

Sale Date: March 23, 2023

Auction Closed

BALTHASAR KLOSSOWSKI DE ROLA (BALTHUS) JEUNE , 1994

Balthus

BALTHASAR KLOSSOWSKI DE ROLA (BALTHUS) JEUNE , 1994

Sale Date: March 23, 2023

Auction Closed

BALTHASAR KLOSSOWSKI DE ROLA (BALTHUS)..., 1994

Balthus

BALTHASAR KLOSSOWSKI DE ROLA (BALTHUS)..., 1994

Sale Date: March 23, 2023

Auction Closed

English (US)

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