- 111
Philip Andreevich Maliavin
Estimate
150,000 - 200,000 GBP
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Description
- Philip Andreevich Maliavin
- Village Life
- signed in Latin l.l.
- oil on canvas
- 85 by 109.5cm, 33 1/2 by 43in.
Provenance
Collection of Catherine Linton, New York
Thence by descent to the present owner
Thence by descent to the present owner
Condition
Structural Condition
The canvas has been lined and is securely attached to a keyed wooden stretcher. This is providing a stable structural support.
Paint Surface
The paint surface has an even varnish layer. There are some areas of drying craquelure including within the dark pigments on the left of the composition, within the dark pigments in the lower centre and within the dark red pigments in the lower right corner. These appear stable. There are also some areas of slightly raised craquelure with some associated small paint losses, most notably within the brown pigments in the background in the upper centre of the composition, within the pale yellow and maroon pigments just above the centre of the lower edge and within the green pigments to the right of the leg of the figure on the left of the composition. There are also some small losses to the right of the foot of the central figure just above the lower edge. These all appear stable at present. There is an area of paint loss within the dark green pigments in the lower centre of the composition which also appears stable at present.
Inspection under ultra-violet light shows some small scattered areas of retouching, including a small spot within the figure on horseback in the upper left of the composition, a small area within the sleeve of the woman on the left of the composition, small retouchings covering old paint losses in the upper centre of the composition, a small spot on the upper left sleeve of the woman on the right of the composition, retouchings within the lower part of the dress of the figure in the centre right of the composition and an area to the left of her right foot, retouchings within the clothing of the figure in the lower right, an area within the lower left corner and two small spots beneath the foot of the woman on the right of the composition. There are other small scattered retouchings and areas of fluorescence within the composition.
Summary
The painting would therefore appear to be in good and stable condition and could benefit from the infilling and retouching of any small paint losses within the composition.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."
Catalogue Note
Village Life comes to auction from the family of Catherine Linton, an aristocrat who was born in Russia in 1913 and spent much of her life in Paris. Another rural scene by Maliavin from the same collection was sold in these rooms on 25 November 2014 (fig.1).
Born into a peasant family, Maliavin's experience of village life would define his work throughout his career. Village Life is testament to his complex and ambivalent attitude towards his origins, which he had left behind to be become a successful artist in the capital. It is the peasant women who take centre-stage here, ‘in all their ugly majesty and all the richness of their dazzling colours’ in the words of Alexander Benois. Maliavin celebrates the vitality of peasant women without idealising them, even showing them in a somewhat grotesque manner with their grins and exposed flesh. In the background, the peasant working the fields is a reminder of the harsh reality of life in the Russian provinces, and is a motif familiar to us from the paintings by the Itinerants, whose leading exponent Ilya Repin was Maliavin’s mentor at the Academy of Arts.
The surface of Village Life is incredibly varied, juxtaposing thick application of paint with areas where the ground has been left visible. In the lower half for example, one can see his characteristic technique of loading his brush with several colours at once before applying to the canvas in overlapping wave-like strokes. The composition is dynamic, the pose of the breastfeeding mother and her sarafan carried in the wind giving the impression of movement from right to left, as though the women were part of a procession.
Born into a peasant family, Maliavin's experience of village life would define his work throughout his career. Village Life is testament to his complex and ambivalent attitude towards his origins, which he had left behind to be become a successful artist in the capital. It is the peasant women who take centre-stage here, ‘in all their ugly majesty and all the richness of their dazzling colours’ in the words of Alexander Benois. Maliavin celebrates the vitality of peasant women without idealising them, even showing them in a somewhat grotesque manner with their grins and exposed flesh. In the background, the peasant working the fields is a reminder of the harsh reality of life in the Russian provinces, and is a motif familiar to us from the paintings by the Itinerants, whose leading exponent Ilya Repin was Maliavin’s mentor at the Academy of Arts.
The surface of Village Life is incredibly varied, juxtaposing thick application of paint with areas where the ground has been left visible. In the lower half for example, one can see his characteristic technique of loading his brush with several colours at once before applying to the canvas in overlapping wave-like strokes. The composition is dynamic, the pose of the breastfeeding mother and her sarafan carried in the wind giving the impression of movement from right to left, as though the women were part of a procession.