London – Chiens savants, ou le carnaval des chiens by Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita (1886-1968) is one of the highlights of Bonhams' 20th & 21st Century Art Evening Sale on 16 October at Bonhams New Bond Street, London. One of the largest works by Foujita ever to come to market, the work has an estimate of £1,500,000 - 2,000,000.

Ruth Woodbridge, Head of the Impressionist & Modern Art department at Bonhams, commented: "Foujita's Chiens savants, ou le carnaval des chiens comes to the market with impeccable provenance, having remained in the same private collection for over a century. It was acquired by the present owner's family at the exhibition of Japanese art held within the 1922 Salon de la Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts, and has not been offered on the open market since its creation in Paris that same year. This is one of the largest works by Foujita to ever come to market, and with its curious subject matter it is sure to spark a lot of interest amongst collectors."

Far more than an imaginative portrayal of animals, Chiens savants, ou le carnaval des chiens is a deeply poetic expression of Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita's hybrid visual language, where humour and elegance converge with remarkable sophistication. Shaped by his formative experiences in both Japan and France, Foujita developed a singular style that seamlessly unites Eastern precision with Western painterly richness. This painting exemplifies that synthesis, transforming a surreal procession of dogs into a layered meditation on cultural duality, a defining feature of Foujita's artistic legacy.

The painting's title, Chiens savants, ou le carnaval des chiens, hints at dogs trained to mimic human behaviour. Two of the dogs in the foreground stand out as the only ones adorned in human-style clothing and are uniquely walking upright on two legs. This deliberate anthropomorphism not only highlights their mimicry of human behaviour but also introduces a note of absurdity and satire. It has been suggested that they are pseudo-portraits of Foujita himself and his second wife, Fernande Barrey. Foujita is distinguishable by the scarf around his head, which he often wore to sooth his recurrent bouts of toothache.

Expert Sylvie Buisson has also suggested that Foujita may have been inspired by the four minute film produced by Alice Guy called Miss Dundee & Her Performing Dogs (1902).

The sale will also feature La route de Giverny (Painted in 1885) by Claude Monet (1840-1926). The work has an estimate of £1,500,000 - 2,000,000.

In 1883, Claude Monet relocated to Giverny, outside of Paris. Monet wrote to his dealer Paul Durand-Ruel: "Once settled, I hope to produce masterpieces, because I like the countryside very much." Inspired by the landscape, Monet would set off to paint the countryside. The journalist Georges Jeanniot accompanied the artist on one of his excursions, commenting that Monet would "stop before the most dissimilar scenes, admiring each and making me aware of how splendid and unexpected nature is."

Another highlight of the sale is Mrs Acton in Delhi (Painted in 1967-1971) by Howard Hodgkin (1932-2017), which has an estimate of £600,000 - 800,000.

Mrs Acton in Delhi depicts the wife of the British Council's representative in the city, set against a chequerboard of orange and green tiles. The painting's style blurs figurative and abstract elements and is influenced by Pop art, with the vivid colors of the Indian flag serving as a reference for the floor tiles. The work captures Hodgkin's enduring fascination with India, a country he visited annually and found to be a source of inspiration for much of his career. This is the first time the work has come to auction.

The sale will also feature Urim and Tumim (Executed in 2000) by Anselm Kiefer (B. 1945). The work has an estimate of £450,000 - 650,000.

Anselm Kiefer's Urim and Tumim is a monumental mixed-media work that explores themes of divine knowledge, spiritual authority, and human history through the lens of Jewish mysticism. The piece's title refers to the oracular objects Urim and Thummim, used by the High Priest of ancient Israel to discern the will of God.

Other highlights of the sale include:

• Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919), Roses dans un vase (Painted circa 1895). Estimate: £400,000 - 600,000.

• Anish Kapoor (B. 1954), Untitled 168 x 170 x 65cm(Executed in 2004). Estimate: £400,000 - 600,000.

The 20th & 21st Century Art Evening Sale will be followed by the 20th & 21st Century Art Day Sale, which will also take place at Bonhams New Bond Street, London.