Claude Saucy – Trychler in a Swiss Village 1963
Claude Saucy – The Trychler, 1963
Acquired from the estate of Lord Yehudi Menuhin, among the contents of his chalet in Gstaad.
Signed artist’s proof engraving by the Swiss artist Claude Saucy, depicting a traditional bell bearer above an Alpine village.
Created in 1963, this charming work depicts a Trychler, one of the traditional cowbell bearers of German-speaking Switzerland, striding—or perhaps dancing—with an enormous cowbell above a village. The figure evokes the custom of Trycheln, in which groups of men process rhythmically through village streets sounding the great bells traditionally associated with Alpine cattle.
A slender church tower rises at the left, its steep roof and clock face placing the scene unmistakably within rural Switzerland. Fine lines suggest mountains, fields and sky, while the rounded foreground resembles a hill—or even a small globe—upon which the figure appears precariously balanced. Against this lightly drawn landscape, the densely worked man, bell and church acquire an extraordinary visual presence.
Saucy deliberately abandons realistic scale and perspective. The monumental bell bearer towers over the church, his raised leg suspended in mid-step, while the landscape unfolds more like a dream or memory than a literal place. His extended hand and upward gaze give the scene a theatrical, almost celebratory quality.
The work’s poetic transformation of village life calls to mind the dreamlike imagery of Marc Chagall. The hovering movement, sharply rising steeple and imaginative compression of figure, landscape and memory suggest an influence from Chagall’s village compositions and Eastern European stedtl art.
The engraving is signed and dated “Claude Saucy 63” in pencil and inscribed “épreuve d’artiste,” indicating that it is an artist’s proof.
1928 Thayngen, Switzerland - 1999 Dijon, France
Also known as: Claude Saucy
Claude Saucy was a Swiss painter, printmaker and art educator, born in Thayngen, in the canton of Schaffhausen, on 24 November 1929. He studied at the Kunstgewerbeschule and the University of Zurich.
Saucy worked in several graphic techniques, including etching, engraving, linocut and woodcut, as well as painting. His work ranged from closely observed botanical subjects to expressive figures, animals and imaginative compositions distinguished by their lively line and poetic visual language.
In 1966 he moved to the United States, where he became chairman of the art department at Kent School in Connecticut and directed the school’s art gallery. He also played an active role in the Washington Art Association, supporting its exhibition programme and encouraging younger artists.
Saucy returned to Europe in 1992 and continued his artistic work until his death in Dijon on 14 April 1999. His paintings and prints were exhibited in Switzerland and the United States and entered both public and private collections. In 1990, the Museum zu Allerheiligen in Schaffhausen presented a substantial selection of his etchings, engravings and colour woodcuts.
Provenance
From the collection of the celebrated violinist and conductor Lord Yehudi Menuhin. Acquired at the dedicated Menuhin estate sale conducted by Dobiaschofsky Auctioneers, Bern, featuring art and decor from Menuhin’s chalet in Gstaad.
Stamped verso:
DOBIASCHOFSKY
NACHLASS
LORD YEHUDI MENUHIN · GSTAAD
The work’s direct and documented provenance adds a particularly interesting cultural association to this imaginative interpretation of Swiss village tradition.