Gustave Courbet

sale: Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, Tableaux, Études et Dessins de Gustave Courbet provenant de son atelier, 9th July 1919, lot 30 (titled Jeune Homme dans la Forêt)
Private Collection, United Kingdom
Sale: Christie's, New York, 22nd May 1997, lot 233A
Purchased at the above sale by the late owner

Berlin, Kupferstichkabinett, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin - Preussischer Kulturbesitz,  Linie, Licht und Schatten. Meisterzeichnungen und Skulpturen der Sammlung Jan und Marie-Anne Krugier-Poniatowski, 1999, no. 90, illustrated in colour in the catalogue
Venice, Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, The Timeless Eye. Master Drawings from the Jan and Marie-Anne Krugier-Poniatowski Collection, 1999, no. 104, illustrated in colour in the catalogue
Madrid, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Miradas sin Tiempo. Dibujos, Pinturas y Esculturas de la Coleccion Jan y Marie-Anne Krugier-Poniatowski, 2000, no. 124, illustrated in colour in the catalogue
Paris, Musée Jacquemart-André, La Passion du Dessin. Collection Jan et Marie-Anne Krugier-Poniatowski, 2002, no. 109, illustrated in colour in the catalogue
Frankfurt am Main, Schirn Kunsthalle, Courbet – Ein Traum von der Moderne, 2010-11, no. 19, illustrated in the catalogue
Geneva, Fondation pour l'écrit du Salon International du Livre et de la Presse, Gustave Courbet (1819-1877) sur les sentiers de l'exil, 2012, no. 58, illustrated in colour in the catalogue

Frits Lugt, Les Marques de Collections de dessins et d'estampes, The Hague, 1956, p. 84, mentioned (as Jeune homme dans la forêt, crayon et fusain (dessin pour Paul et Virginie) [sic])

Executed on blue wove paper. The sheet is not laid down and is attached to the mount at points along the extreme edges, and is undulating very slightly. The ink of the Courbet studio stamp has faded over time. Apart from uneven yellowing and a number of repairs both along the upper edge of the sheet, and a minor 0.5cm scuff in the lower right (visible only under close inspection), this work is in good overall condition. Presented in a simple gilt frame, the edges of the sheet visible and not covered by the mat, under glass. The original backboard of this work, bearing the wax seal, has been removed and will be sold with the work.
"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."

The present work relates to an oil on panel by Courbet dated 1845, in which a sculptor (traditionally identified as a self-portrait) in troubadour dress is depicted beside a sculpted female portrait in a landscape typical of the artist's native Franche-Comté. The oil is a pendant to Le Guitarrero of 1844, which Courbet showed at the Paris Salon of 1845.