Gertrude O'Brady collection at Bonhams: rediscovering the 'meteor of naïve painting'

Paris - Bonhams is pleased to present an exceptional collection of paintings and works on paper by Gertrude O'Brady (1903-1978), an American-born artist whose singular career occupies a unique place in the history of twentieth-century art. Often described by critic and collector Anatole Jakovsky as a "meteor of naïve painting," O'Brady developed a highly personal artistic language that combined poetic observation, vivid colour and an acute sensitivity to everyday life. It will be included in an online Impressionist and Modern Art auction running from 25 September to 6 October 2026 in Paris.

The collection brings together a remarkable group of 45 paintings, drawings and works on paper spanning key moments in the artist's career. It offers collectors a rare opportunity to explore the breadth of O'Brady's artistic achievement, from her celebrated depictions of Parisian streets and neighbourhood scenes to intimate portraits and works created in the aftermath of the Second World War.

Born in Evanston, Illinois, O'Brady arrived in Paris in the late 1930s and only began painting as an adult. Encouraged by Anatole Jakovsky, she rapidly produced a body of work that attracted critical attention for its originality and expressive power. During the German occupation, she was interned at the camp of Vittel, where she created numerous drawings documenting the lives of her fellow detainees. Following her release, she continued to work in France, developing a distinctive visual universe populated by city streets, cafés, shops, artists, writers and ordinary passers-by. The works in the collection reveal O'Brady's remarkable ability to transform everyday subjects into compelling artistic narratives. Parisian storefronts, bustling boulevards and familiar urban landmarks are rendered with a combination of precision, humour and imagination that has drawn comparisons to both Henri Rousseau and the great tradition of naïve painting. Among Gertrude O'Brady's admirers was Baroness Alix de Rothschild (1911-1982), the renowned French collector and patron, who acquired a number of the artist's works.

Arnaud Cornette de Saint Cyr, President of Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr, commented: "Gertrude O'Brady remains one of the most fascinating and underappreciated artists of the twentieth century. Her life story is extraordinary, but it is ultimately the originality and humanity of her work that continue to resonate today. This collection offers an exceptional insight into an artist whose paintings and drawings combine poetic vision, historical testimony and remarkable technical accomplishment. O'Brady's work offers a poetic vision of a harmonious and peaceful world, filled with vivid shades of colours, optimism, and nostalgia."

The sale is led by a major oil on canvas entitled Aquarium, a captivating example of Gertrude O'Brady's distinctive poetic vision. Characterized by the artist's highly personal and imaginative approach, the painting transforms an underwater seascape into a dreamlike scene infused with colour, curiosity and wonder (estimate: €5,000-8,000). Her early paintings, created near Paris between 1939 and 1941, depict elegant Belle Époque streets, lively cafés, Sunday promenades, horse-drawn carriages, and scenes of everyday life. Through vibrant colours and a dreamlike sensibility, she captured an idealized world untouched by the turmoil of her era such as in Icare, oil on canvas painted on 16 April 1940 in Paris depicting the mythological figure of Icarus flying gracefully among birds and butterflies, suspended above a dreamlike landscape that hovers between reality and imagination (estimate: €4,000-6,000). In a later work painted in 1947, entitled Bal des fort des Halles, O'Brady portrays a traditional Parisian market hall animated by shops, French flags and floral garlands celebrating the end of the war. As throughout her urban scenes, the artist combines a taste for narrative detail with a nostalgic evocation of a disappearing Paris, capturing the warmth, vitality and communal spirit of a bygone age. (estimate: €800-1,200).

During her internment in Vittel as an American citizen between 1940 and 1944, O'Brady turned to portraiture. Using paper and pencils supplied by the Red Cross, she produced sensitive and moving portraits of fellow detainees as well as self-portraits that reveal a deeply introspective artist. These drawings stand today as valuable historical and human documents such as a Self-portrait included in the sale, which is a graphite work on paper estimated at €800-1,200.

Following the war, O'Brady broadened her artistic practice, creating landscapes, floral studies, animal subjects, and portraits of both ordinary people and prominent cultural figures, including Jean Cocteau, Paul Éluard, and Jean Dubuffet. Her later work combines careful observation with emotional expression, revealing an artist continually searching for truth and beauty.

Other highlights of the collection include:

• 14 juillet place Vendôme by Gertrude O' Brady (1903-1978), oil on canvas. (estimate: €5,000-8,000)

• Les Oursons ou Les Koalas by Gertrude O' Brady (1903-1978). This oil on paper is difficult to date with certainty. Its delicate brushwork and refined palette give the work a distinctive charm, while the fluidity of its execution conveys a remarkable sense of freshness and immediacy. This work has been exhibited in many solo exhibitions in Baden-Baden in 1961, in Paris in 1964, in Tokyo in 1966 and in Nice in 1985. (estimate: €600-800)

About Gertrude O'Brady

Gertrude O'Brady (1903-1978) was an American artist born near Chicago. Originally trained as a pianist and composer, she settled in France in the late 1930s, where chronic illness unexpectedly led her to discover painting. Encouraged by critic Anatole Jakovsky, she produced a remarkable body of naïve paintings depicting Parisian life and Belle Époque scenes. During her internment in Vittel throughout World War II, she created numerous portraits and drawings documenting daily life in captivity. After the war, she continued painting and exhibiting in France and the United States before withdrawing from the art world and spending her final years in religious retreat. Today, she is recognized as one of the most distinctive and poetic voices of twentieth-century naïve art.