Rating and value of paintings by Catherine Zoubtchenko

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Rating and value of the artist Catherine Zoubtchenko

Catherine Zoubtchenko is a well-known artist among lovers of modern and contemporary art. Now, the prices of her works are rising at the auctioneers' gavel.

Her oils on canvas are particularly prized, especially by American buyers, and the price at which they sell on the art market ranges from €40 to €20,000, a significant delta but one that speaks volumes about the value that can be attributed to the artist's works.

In 2013, his work Monik, an oil painting dating from 1963, sold for €20,000, while it was estimated at between €15,000 and €20,000. His value is rising sharply. 

Order of value from the most basic to the most prestigious

The works and style of Catherine Zoubtchenko

Catherine Zoubtchenko is a Franco-Russian artist born in Leningrad in 1937, who has lived in Paris since 1954. Her work is essentially oriented towards non-figurative abstraction, with an emphasis on color, geometric composition and the materiality of the pictorial gesture.

Her visual vocabulary combines angular shapes and intense chromatic flat tints such as triangles, squares, stripes and a colorful modular construction. She varies in scale, with medium to large canvases, often signed and dated, marking periods of chromatic experimentation.

The internal structure is dynamic, with compositions arbitrating a tension between geometric stability and chromatic vivacity, evoking both order and expression. The supports are varied, with oil on canvas, sometimes gouache or watercolor on paper depending on the series.

The pictorial application is rich, with a use of pure color, moderate impastos and a juxtaposition of solids and strokes, with an emphasis on surface rather than illusion.

The compositions are modular : the geometric structure is often inscribed in a network, the canvas is subdivided into articulated chromatic zones, requiring precise calibration of shapes. The chromatic palette is deliberate, with vivid hues of blues, greens, reds and purples, and neutrals such as grays and blacks, deployed to create visual rhythms and depth effects.

Signature and dating are visible; each work is usually signed, dated, and sometimes titled or annotated on the reverse.  

The life of Catherine Zoubtchenko

Catherine Zoubtchenko was born in 1937 in Leningrad (USSR - Russia). In 1941, she was deported with her parents to Berlin by the Nazi occupiers. She moved to Paris in 1954, where she began her career as a painter. The artist studied at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière and the Académie Julian between 1954 and 1955.

She became the sole pupil of André Lanskoy from 1958, and became a figure of non-figurative abstract painting in France. Her works have been sold at auction since the late 1980s, with current prices amounting to several thousand euros. She has held several exhibitions in France and Europe.

Focus on Abstract Composition 1, Catherine Zoubtchenko

This modestly-sized work (43 x 56 cm) features geometric and angular shapes (stripes, obliques, rectangles) that are nested within one another, suggesting a dynamic visual rhythm.

The palette shows a contrast between cool tones (greens, blues) and warmer or darker touches (reds, blacks). The balance between these values creates visual tension. The style of non-figurative abstraction is fully assumed, with no identifiable reference to figuration; everything is constructed through form, color and structure.

The work follows in the footsteps of Lanskoy's teaching, but asserts its own formal and chromatic autonomy. The dialogue between cold forms and more vibrant colors can be interpreted as a balance between calm and intensity, and between structural restraint and expressiveness.

This work illustrates that abstraction does not mean the absence of sensation, but rather the visual translation of an emotion or structural thought. This painting is emblematic of the 1960s period in Zoubtchenko's work, a period when she asserted her geometric abstract language.

It allows us to compare her work with that of other geometric abstract artists of the period such as Sonia Delaunay or Jean Dewasne, and measure his singularity, in particular his way of blending geometry and chromatic dynamics.

Technically, this work marks the artist's mastery of surface construction and color treatment, without recourse to figuration.

Market segmentation and artist's rating

The works targeted for Catherine Zoubtchenko are medium to large abstract paintings on canvas, with gouache or paper variants for secondary collections. Typical buyers are post-war abstract art collectors, French and Parisian galleries, and geometric and modern art collectors.

The market is mainly located in France with extensions to French-speaking Europe, with some Belgian or Swiss auction entries noted.

Influencing factors are the date of production (the 1960s-70s seem to command higher prices), the medium (oils on canvas are worth more than gouaches on paper), the quality of the signature and date, as well as provenance, the good condition of the work and mentions in exhibition catalogs.

There are opportunities for moderately priced entries (a few hundred to a few thousand euros) for secondary works or smaller dimensions. Major works fetch several thousand euros.

The artist's works for sale often appear with estimates around €800 - €2,000 for secondary formats. A gouache on paper signed and dated circa 1987, for example, was estimated at €500 - 600, while it sold for €2,050.

The price range shows a wide amplitude, indicating that the quotation is not firmly established at a very high level compared to higher-ranking abstract artists. Large-format or significant works in date of creation (1960s) seem to be better valued than small pieces or late, minority works.

The market still appears to be in a consolidation phase, and institutional recognition as well as the artist's historicity may influence a potential rise in quotation.

Her signature

Not all of Catherine Zoubtchenko's works are signed.

Although there are variations, here's a first example of her signature:

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