Emil Nolde

Marlborough Fine Art Ltd., London
Acquired from the above by the present owner

 

Executed on cream wove paper, not laid down, and taped to the overmount along the left and right edges. There are a few spots of foxing in places and some small paint losses to the dark blue pigment of her hair. Otherwise, this work is in overall good condition. Colours: overall fairly accurate in the printed catalogue, though the paper tone is slightly warmer in the original.
"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."

Art historian and glamorous filmstar Beverly Whitney Kean was a semi-mythical figure to art historians in Russia, the United States and Europe. Her book All the Empty Palaces: The Merchant Patrons of Modern Art in Pre-Revolutionary Russia (1983) had no precedent or rival and is still the definitive account of the two great Moscow collectors Sergei Shchukin and Ivan Morozov, who put together before 1914 the finest collection ever known, at the time or since, of Impressionist and Modern French painters. She had been one of the first western tourists allowed under close surveillance into Russia in 1959, at a time when barely anything was known about these extraordinary collectors. Encouraged by Alfred Barr of the MoMA in New York, Beverly Whitney Kean's subsequent research was instrumental in promoting the many 'lost' French masterpieces she found there (including Henri Matisse's The Dance) to a Western public and unlocking the secrets behind their early journey to Russia.