- 71
Pierre Bonnard
Estimate
500,000 - 700,000 USD
Log in to view results
bidding is closed
Description
- Pierre Bonnard
- Nu blond assis (étude)
- Stamped with the signature Bonnard (lower left)
- Oil on canvas
- 32 7/8 by 24 3/8 in.
- 83.5 by 62 cm
Provenance
Estate of the artist
Private Collection (acquired by 1966)
Exhibited
Tokyo, Fujikawa Gallery & Tokyo, The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Bonnard, 1968, no. 11, illustrated in color in the catalogue
Nagoya, Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art, Pierre Bonnard, 1997, no. 55, illustrated in color in the catalogue
Tokyo, Musée des Beaux-Arts Sompo Japan Seiji Togo; Kagoshima, Musée Municipal des Beaux-Arts de Kagoshima & Tokushima, Musée Préfectoral des Arts Modernes de Tokushima, Pierre Bonnard, 2004, no. 55, illustrated in color in the catalogue
Literature
Jean & Henry Dauberville, Bonnard, catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre peint 1920-1939, vol. III, Paris, 1973, no. 2171, illustrated p. 422
Condition
Good condition. The work is lined. Under UV, there are some minimal scattered areas of retouching including a thin line across the figure's right breast and a few specks in the upper left corner.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
Catalogue Note
Bonnard's painting of this voluptuous blond model dates from around 1931, when the artist was living at Le Bosquet, the home he shared with his wife Marthe. Although Marthe was the subject of several depictions of nudes that he did during this period, the present work is one of his rare portrayals of a fair-haired model, rumored to be one of his mistresses. According to the catalogue raisonné, the present work is closely related to no. 1482, which appears to depict the same model.
Bonnard's subjects were always inspired by his immediate surroundings whether he was painting the countryside of the Seine valley, the landscape of the Midi, his own dining room, or the modest interiors of small holiday retreats. Indeed, bathers and nudes were among the most important images in Bonnard's visual vocabulary and personal iconography. Even though we recognize the nudes in his paintings as people deeply involved in his life, whether his life-long companion Marthe, a mistress, or a model, many have been influenced by Bonnard's admiration for classical Greek sculpture. Conscious though he was of the classical ideal, Bonnard was not striving for the perfection of symmetry by balance and compensation, but he makes sure that while the figure contains within itself "the rhythms of movement", it "always comes to rest at its true centre" (Kenneth Clark, The Nude, London, 1985, p. 33).
Bonnard's subjects were always inspired by his immediate surroundings whether he was painting the countryside of the Seine valley, the landscape of the Midi, his own dining room, or the modest interiors of small holiday retreats. Indeed, bathers and nudes were among the most important images in Bonnard's visual vocabulary and personal iconography. Even though we recognize the nudes in his paintings as people deeply involved in his life, whether his life-long companion Marthe, a mistress, or a model, many have been influenced by Bonnard's admiration for classical Greek sculpture. Conscious though he was of the classical ideal, Bonnard was not striving for the perfection of symmetry by balance and compensation, but he makes sure that while the figure contains within itself "the rhythms of movement", it "always comes to rest at its true centre" (Kenneth Clark, The Nude, London, 1985, p. 33).