Konstantin Ivanovich Gorbatov

The artist's family, circa 1955
Thence by descent

Original canvas. The paint surface is fairly clean. UV light reveals no signs of retouching. Held in a modern wooden frame. Unexamined out of frame.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A group of paintings by Konstantin Gorbatov from an Important Private American Collection
Lots 356-385

After graduating from the Imperial Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg Konstantin Gorbatov was awarded a scholarship which allowed him to travel extensively in Europe. He felt a particular affinity for the Italian countryside, finding its colours and warmth an ideal context for his unique fusion of Impressionist and Romantic tendencies and, on emigrating from Russia in 1922, he spent four years on the island of Capri, which he had first visited in 1912 to stay with Maxim Gorky. Liberated from the artistic restrictions of post-revolutionary Russia, he perfected an inimitable style that aimed to "depict life not the way it is but the way it could be" (The New Hermitage Museum, Konstantin Gorbatov, 2003).

 

His attempts to capture the vivid colours and clear light of the Mediterranean resulted in a stunning body of work, bringing both considerable profit and enthusiastic reviews: "...the heart pounds with joy to see something so dear to us: Naples, Capri, Amalfi, Venice, Ravello. Running grape vines, orange branches, terraces in the sun over our sea. The beauty of the landscape and the sunlight are smoothed by the artist, who has seen nature...This arouses our sympathy; his feeling is so strong that the artist's reality feels like ours" (Il Messagero, March 14, 1926 cited in the exhibition catalogue Konstantin Gorbatov: 125 years since his birth, Moscow, 2001, pp.5-6). In 1926 Gorbatov and his wife moved to Berlin, but he returned annually to Italy until the outbreak of World War II and continued to paint Italian landscapes all his life.

 

Gorbatov's appetite for travel did not diminish with age and, in 1934, he sailed to Palestine via Greece and the Aegean. The trip provided him with a wealth of fresh inspiration: "For me, as an artist, the trip to Palestine was a true revelation; nature showed me wonders, combinations and contrasts beyond anything I could have dreamed of before." (The New Hermitage Museum, Konstantin Gorbatov, 2003). Both the nuanced palette of his Middle Eastern works and the wonderful sense of activity in the dense compositions provide interesting contrasts to his earlier work. "The suburbs of Jerusalem are indescribable in terms of their unexpected forms and colours..." noted Gorbatov, "The shapes of mountains, hills and horizons are so original and at the same time simple...the colours are hot: all shades of brown, yellow and orange, one tone changes subtly to the next, like a charmed Eastern melody, whose sounds modulate and die out" (idem). In the context of his overall career, Gorbatov's versatility is strikingly apparent in these works; however diverse, each canvas invites the viewer into a magical world of dazzling colour and luminosity.  

 

Gorbatov died in Berlin in 1945, after the city had been liberated by Soviet troops. His wife, Olga Hösli Gorbatov, died less than a month later. The incredible thirty works that comprise the offered collection are now making their first known appearance at auction.