Artists

From Albert Adams to Portia Zvavahera, Strauss & Co maintains a detailed database of every artist sold at auction since 2009. Whether it is painting, sculpture, works on paper, photography, ceramics or new media, this searchable database lists by artist every lot offered and provides aggregated data useful to collectors. Famous South African artists like William Kentridge, JH Pierneef, Alexis Preller and Irma Stern are introduced with helpful biographies along with the best contemporary artists.



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Jean Welz

South African 1900-1975 


Johann Max Friedrich Welz, known by the French version of his name, Jean, was born in Salzburg, Austria, into a family of gilders and picture framers. He studied architecture at the Academy of Applied Arts in Vienna and went to Paris in 1925 to oversee the construction of the Austrian Pavilion at the International Exhibition for Applied Arts. He immersed himself in the flourishing arts and culture scene in Paris and worked on various building projects with prominent Modernist architects such as Le Corbusier, Robert Mallet-Stevens and Adolf Loos. In 1937, Welz, with his wife Inger and firstborn son emigrated to South Africa with a letter of recommendation from Le Corbusier. In Johannesburg he was involved in redesigning and overseeing the rebuilding of the entrance foyer of the Wits University Great Hall after a fire.

Welz’s precarious health forced the family to seek out the dry climate of the Klein Karoo, where they lived in the isolated Tradouw Pass, and then at De Wet outside Worcester. In 1942 Welz was approached to curate the Hugo Naudé Estate after Naudé’s death and he established the Hugo Naudé Art Centre. That year he held successful solo exhibitions in Cape Town, Stellenbosch and Johannesburg and was invited by fellow artist Gregoire Boonzaier to join and exhibit with the New Group.

Welz represented South Africa on the Venice Biennale in 1948 and 1952, and on the São Paulo Biennale in 1957. In the 1960s and 70s paintings by Welz fetched the highest prices of any artist in South Africa. His oeuvre consists of abstracts, still lifes, landscapes, nudes and portraits, often painted in layers of colour glazed or scumbled. Jean Welz was the father of former Managing Director of Strauss & Co, auctioneer Stephan Welz.


185 lots offered      52.43% sold      ZAR 16 339 725
 

  Including Premium and VAT Results include Buyer's Premium and VAT
Jean Welz; Breede River, Cape
24 May 2010
Sold for ZAR 423 320
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Jean Welz; Vrede Graaf Reinet
15 Mar 2010
ZAR 8 000 - 12 000
 
Jean Welz; Resting Model
15 Mar 2010
Sold for ZAR 946 900
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Jean Welz; Still Life with Two Grapefruit and a Knife
8 Oct 2009
Sold for ZAR 77 980
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Jean Welz; Still Life with Daisies in a Vase
8 Oct 2009
ZAR 12 000 - 16 000
 
Jean Welz; Portrait of a Woman
8 Oct 2009
Sold for ZAR 4 099
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Jean Welz; Two Figures by a Roadside
8 Oct 2009
Sold for ZAR 100 260
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Jean Welz; The Fire Station, Worcester
8 Oct 2009
ZAR 150 000 - 200 000
 
Jean Welz; Still Life (Cezannesque)
8 Oct 2009
Sold for ZAR 1 225 400
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Jean Welz; A Crouching Woman
7 Sep 2009
Sold for ZAR 5 855
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Jean Welz; Woman Reclining on a Chaise Longue
7 Sep 2009
Sold for ZAR 10 539
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Jean Welz; Still Life with Bottle
9 Mar 2009
Sold for ZAR 300 780
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT