Symeon Shimin (1902–1984), Gum Chum / This Mortal Coil, oil / mixed media on canvas, United States, circa 1945-1955
11000,00 zł
The presented canvas is a museum-quality easel painting by the esteemed American painter and muralist of Jewish-Russian descent, Symeon Shimin. The painting is an outstanding example of post-war socially engaged expressionism, combining features of narrative painting with poster-like persuasion. Signed lower right: S. Shimin (artist’s signature, authenticated)
The work is characterized by an extremely condensed, claustrophobic composition with a powerful emotional charge. The foreground is dominated by the expressively deformed figure of an elderly man captured in a theatrical, accusatory gesture – his hand points directly at the viewer. This technique, intensifying the cinematic drama, directly refers to Shimin’s rich experience in creating iconic political and film posters for Hollywood (the artist was, among others, the author of the original poster for the 1939 film “Gone with the Wind”). In the background, in a dark shadow, the melancholic face of a second sage emerges. The entire piece is rendered in a stark, earthy, monochromatic palette dominated by deep browns, blacks, and muted blue garments, with a masterful use of chiaroscuro.
Dimensions: 82.5 x 59.5 cm (with frame 85 x 62 cm)
1 in stock
Work by Symeon Shimin
The figures in the painting bear unique characteristics of a multilayered universal allegory. Their facial features, abundant gray beards, and traditional head coverings strongly resonate with the iconography of Eastern European Jews (Hasidim) – a cultural sphere from which Shimin himself originated. However, the artist stylizes the figures as Old Testament prophets dressed in ascetic, biblical cloaks, making them a universal symbol of suffering, war-torn humanity.
The key to the work's uniqueness is the striking, bitter pacifist satire realized through the juxtaposition of two inscriptions in the lower part of the canvas: "Gum Chum" – text written in Gothic font on a scroll imitating an attached piece of canvas. This is a direct quote from a post-war street cry of children asking American soldiers stationed in Europe for sweets ("Got any gum, chum?"). It symbolizes the trivialization of war's tragedy, the prose of life, and the influx of Western consumerism. Hidden beneath the scroll, written against the canvas, is a quote from William Shakespeare's most famous monologue in Hamlet ("...when we have shuffled off this mortal coil") refers to death, the liberation of the soul from the sufferings of the body, and ultimate matters.
Here, the artist brilliantly juxtaposes ultimate matters, death, and Shakespearean existential drama with a trivial, market-driven slogan of everyday life.
While Symeon Shimin's official legacy is primarily associated with monumental government commissions in the USA (such as the famous mural Contemporary Justice and the Child in the Department of Justice in Washington) and subtle book illustrations, the offered painting is a rare, intimate pacifist manifesto painted for himself, free from institutional censorship.
A work of outstanding decorative and exhibition value, representing an excellent capital investment for discerning collectors of 20th-century art and Judaica.
Symeon Shimin was born in 1902 in Astrakhan, Russia, to a Jewish family. As a ten-year-old child, he emigrated with his parents to the USA, where the family lived in poverty in New York. The experience of poverty, hard work from the age of 16, and growing up in multicultural Brooklyn shaped his deep empathy for human suffering, injustice, and the human condition.
| Weight | 2,3 kg |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 82,5 × 59,5 cm |
| Kolorystyka |
Blue ,Brown ,Greys |
| Czas powstania |
circa mid-20th century (approx. 1945-1955) |
| Kraj pochodzenia |
United States |
| Era/Style |
Expressionism |
| Autor |
Symeon Shimin (1902-1984) |
| State of preservation |
Very good |
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Bibliography / links:
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- Pieter Neefs II - Sotheby's Auction 2021