Harvard Art Museums > 1981.194: The Thief Paintings Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"The Thief (Jean Dubuffet) , 1981.194,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Dec 22, 2024, https://hvrd.art/o/222186. This object does not yet have a description. Gallery Text In his writings, the self-trained and self-identified outsider artist Jean Dubuffet attacked Western high culture as a corrupting force that had contributed to the devastating catastrophes of World War II. His response was to gravitate toward works made by children, criminals, and psychotics — those he considered uncontaminated by conventional standards of conduct. Structured from angular patches of canvas pasted on top of one another, the rudimentary body in The Thief appears scourged and bandaged, evoking the open wounds, burns, and scabs that contemporaneous viewers would have seen on soldiers returning home and in mass media images of wartime atrocities. The title may refer to the hardship and economic scarcity in France during reconstruction, which forced some to steal in order to survive. Identification and Creation Object Number 1981.194 People Jean Dubuffet, French (LeHavre, France 1901 - 1985 Paris, France) Title The Thief Other Titles Original Language Title: Le Malandrin Classification Paintings Work Type painting Date 1956 Culture French Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/222186 Location Location Level 1, Room 1330, Modern and Contemporary Art, New Images View this object's location on our interactive map Physical Descriptions Medium Mixed media collage on canvas Technique Collage Dimensions 88.9 x 41.1 cm (35 x 16 3/16 in.) Inscriptions and Marks Signed: u.r.: J. Dubuffet 56 inscription: On verso of canvas: Le Malandrin // J. Dubuffet // aout 56 Provenance Recorded Ownership History Arthur Tooth, London, as of 1969. Mr. and Mrs. Stanley Marcus, Dallas, Texas, gift; to Fogg Art Museum, 1981. Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Stanley Marcus Copyright © Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris Accession Year 1981 Object Number 1981.194 Division Modern and Contemporary Art Contact am_moderncontemporary@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Publication History Max Loreau, ed., Catalogue des travaux de Jean Dubuffet, J.-J. Pauvert (Paris, France, 1964), vol. XII, p. 60, no. 61, ill. (black and white) Exhibition History Modern Art at Harvard, Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, 07/31/1999 - 09/26/1999; Takamatsu City Museum of Art, Kagawa, 10/09/1999 - 11/14/1999; Matsuzakaya Art Museum, Nagoya, 12/02/1999 - 12/27/1999; Oita City Museum, Oita, 01/06/2000 - 02/06/2000; Museum of Modern Art, Ibaraki, Ibaraki, 02/11/2000 - 03/26/2000 HAA 10 Survey Course (S421): The Western Tradition: Art Since the Renaissance (Fall 10 Rotation 3), Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 11/12/2010 - 01/15/2011 32Q: 1330 Mid-Century Figurative, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/16/2014 - 04/14/2025; Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050 Verification Level This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Modern and Contemporary Art at am_moderncontemporary@harvard.edu
