DIENSTAG, 14. APRIL 2026 
Anne Barrès occupies a distinctive and foundational position within the post-war artistic landscape. She trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Montpellier in the early 1960s — alongside Vincent Bioulès and Claude Viallat, who would go on to found the Supports/Surfaces movement — before specialising in ceramics at the École des Beaux-Arts in Bourges under Jean Lerat. Over a career spanning more than five decades, she developed a body of work of striking intensity, exploring the limits of material with unwavering focus. The body — its resistance, endurance and fragility — lies at the heart of her practice.
This sale brings together 146 lots, comprising the entirety of Anne Barrès’ studio holdings: sculptures, works on paper and drawings. Estimates are deliberately accessible, ranging from €150 to €12,000 for one of the most ambitious works, Claustra, 2011, made up of thirteen metal rods threaded with stoneware elements (lot 62 – estimate: €8,000–12,000). Among the brick sculptures, La Triple Poussée, 1994, featured in the retrospective “Anne Barrès sculptures” at the Musée Denys-Puech in Rodez in 2008, as did Les Dynamiques, 1995, a group of three assembled sculptures (lots 34 and 35 – estimate: €4,000–6,000 each).
Around fifteen works from the Flétries series are included, among them several large-scale stoneware and metal Grandes Flétries estimated at €1,500–5,000 (lots 71 to 83), alongside smaller, more accessible pieces such as Fleur, circa 2008–2010 (lot 86 – estimate: €300–500). The series also appears in works on paper, including a striking large-format mixed-media piece, Flétries sur fond de Claustra (lot 89 – estimate: €600–800).
The sale further features works from the Tentures series, including Le Torchon Froncé, 1979, composed of pinched porcelain elements with grey stoneware inlays (lot 17 – estimate: €1,500–2,000), as well as sculptures from the Architectures Sauvages series, such as Immeuble, 2013, in polychrome stoneware (lot 128 – estimate: €800–1,200).
Finally, the auction will open with a 1970 bas-relief, aptly titled La Création, composed of glazed stoneware elements mounted on a wooden support (lot 1 – estimate: €600–800).
Anne Barrès : La sculpture en force
O ffered by Art Valorem for the first time at auction, the work of Anne Barrès reveals the full singularity of a major contemporary sculptor, whose practice has, for over fifty years, explored the tensions between material, form and movement.
Art Valorem will present, on Tuesday 14 April 2026 at Hôtel Drouot, the complete contents of sculptor Anne Barrès’ studio (born 1938, Rodez, France). This will be the first time her work is offered at auction. The sale is accompanied by a monographic catalogue prepared by Frédéric Bodet and published by Art Valorem, and is set to be a key event for collectors and admirers of contemporary sculpture.
A pioneering figure in French sculpture
Anne Barrès occupies a distinctive and foundational position within the post-war artistic landscape. She trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Montpellier in the early 1960s — alongside Vincent Bioulès and Claude Viallat, who would go on to found the Supports/Surfaces movement — before specialising in ceramics at the École des Beaux-Arts in Bourges under Jean Lerat. Over a career spanning more than five decades, she developed a body of work of striking intensity, exploring the limits of material with unwavering focus. The body — its resistance, endurance and fragility — lies at the heart of her practice.
Her monumental sculptures have been exhibited in major French institutions, including the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, the Musée d’Art Moderne in Villeneuve-d’Ascq, the Musée Denys-Puech in Rodez, the Musée départemental de l’Oise in Beauvais. Her works are also held in public collections, notably the Fonds national d’art contemporain (FNAC).
An exceptional sale
This sale brings together 146 lots, comprising the entirety of Anne Barrès’ studio holdings: sculptures, works on paper and drawings. Estimates are deliberately accessible, ranging from €150 to €12,000 for one of the most ambitious works, Claustra, 2011, made up of thirteen metal rods threaded with stoneware elements (lot 62 – estimate: €8,000–12,000). Among the brick sculptures, La Triple Poussée, 1994, featured in the retrospective “Anne Barrès sculptures” at the Musée Denys-Puech in Rodez in 2008, as did Les Dynamiques, 1995, a group of three assembled sculptures (lots 34 and 35 – estimate: €4,000–6,000 each).
Around fifteen works from the Flétries series are included, among them several large-scale stoneware and metal Grandes Flétries estimated at €1,500–5,000 (lots 71 to 83), alongside smaller, more accessible pieces such as Fleur, circa 2008–2010 (lot 86 – estimate: €300–500). The series also appears in works on paper, including a striking large-format mixed-media piece, Flétries sur fond de Claustra (lot 89 – estimate: €600–800).
The sale further features works from the Tentures series, including Le Torchon Froncé, 1979, composed of pinched porcelain elements with grey stoneware inlays (lot 17 – estimate: €1,500–2,000), as well as sculptures from the Architectures Sauvages series, such as Immeuble, 2013, in polychrome stoneware (lot 128 – estimate: €800–1,200).
Finally, the auction will open with a 1970 bas-relief, aptly titled La Création, composed of glazed stoneware elements mounted on a wooden support (lot 1 – estimate: €600–800).
