English
A rare painting by Surrealist artist Leonora Carrington is heading to auction after more than 70 years out of public view. The work, titled Fil d’Or (1953), will appear at Heritage Auctions in New York on November 10, with an estimate of $250,000 to $350,000.
A Golden Thread With Many Meanings
The title translates from French as “gold thread.” Traditionally, the term refers to delicate metal wire used to decorate luxury textiles. In the painting, Carrington depicts a cosmic bird that appears to be built from intersecting threads. All of them radiate from a single source — a golden galaxy that pulses in place of a heart.
Stay connected to every major update — subscribe and follow us on the PhoenixQ website and across our social media platforms.
Carrington created the work using grattage, a technique developed by her former partner, artist Max Ernst. The process involves scraping layers of fresh paint with a blade or spatula. This exposes unexpected shapes and textures, giving the image a sense of spontaneous, unfolding motion.
Heritage Auctions described the painting’s title as a deliberate artistic choice. “By choosing this title, Leonora Carrington shifts focus away from the obvious,” the auction house wrote. “Ultimately, Fil d’Or demonstrates that words hold multiple meanings, explores how others perceive them, and questions whether they are truly understood at all.”
Mexico and the Surrealist Circle
Carrington painted Fil d’Or in Mexico, where she had settled after fleeing Europe at the outbreak of World War II. There, she built close friendships with fellow refugees, including Surrealist painter Remedios Varos and photographer Kati Horna. The group shared deep interests in alchemy, the occult, and esoteric symbolism.
Carrington remained in Mexico for the rest of her life. She died in Mexico City in 2011 at the age of 94, having established herself as both a visual artist and a writer.
A Surging Market for Female Surrealists
Although Carrington achieved recognition during her lifetime, interest in female Surrealists has grown sharply over the past decade. The 2022 Venice Biennale, curated by Cecilia Alemani and titled after Carrington’s book The Milk of Dreams, helped drive that renewed attention.
The market reached a new peak in 2024. Her 1945 painting Les Distractions de Dagobert sold for $28.5 million at Sotheby’s, setting a new auction record for the artist. That result far exceeded her previous record of $3.2 million, also set in 2022.
The upcoming sale of Fil d’Or at Heritage Auctions arrives at a moment of continued strong demand for Carrington’s work. For collectors, the painting’s seven decades away from the public market makes it a particularly uncommon opportunity.
