Nikolai Fechin

The canvas has been strip-lined. The canvas is slightly uneven to the right of the sitter's neck. There are some minor frame abrasions along the edges. There is craquelure throughout, in particular to the impastoed areas. Inspection under UV light does not reveal any apparent signs of restoration. Held in a gold-painted wooden frame. Unexamined out of frame.
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Nikolai Fechin was always a portraitist at heart, and in his portrayal of the human face we see his true calling. His favorite subjects were the animated faces of people he knew, and while he aimed for verisimilitude he was also adept at capturing character and spirit. Fechin’s bold technique shifted slightly after his emigration to the United States in 1923. He was faced with a fresh new environment and mentality which unwittingly influenced some of his portraiture from this American period. The exuberant, spontaneous brushwork, present in many of his Russian period works and his later portraits of Native Americans and Mexicans, became more restrained and exacting in many of his American paintings as he responded, perhaps unconsciously, to the expectations of his models.

The Indian Necklace, executed in the mid-1930s, is an example of Fechin’s occasional, somewhat restrained style as a portraitist; he uses a concise formula, renouncing harsh angles and excessive dynamics. While his brushstroke which makes up the background of the painting is wide and sweeping, the rest of the portrait conveys a subdued elegance, rarely seen before. The quickly painted, intense spots of colour on the sitter’s dress and her piercing blue eyes add an element of bright lightheartedness to the picture.

We would like to thank Galina Tuluzakova, author of the 2007 monograph on the artist, for providing this catalogue note.