Bernard Boutet de Monvel

Bernard Boutet de Monvel, Reinhardt Gallery, New York, 21 novembre - 10 décembre 1932, n°8 ;
Profiles, Bernard Boutet de Monvel, Knoedler Gallery, New York, 10 - 29 novembre 1947, n°12 ;
Exposition rétrospective Bernard Boutet de Monvel, Musée Galliera, Paris, 26 janvier - 5 mars 1951, n°51 ;
Bernard Boutet de Monvel, Rétrospective, Fondation Mona Bismarck, Paris, 27 avril-30 juin 2001

Stéphane-Jacques Addade, Bernard Boutet de Monvel, Paris, 2001, reproduit p. 8;
Stéphane-Jacques Addade, Bernard Boutet de Monvel, Paris, 2016, reproduit p. 293

The painting sits on its original canvas. Small wears are visible on the surface, and on the photograph of the painting, along with small nail holes on the borders of the canvas. Under UV light, two large repaints are visible in the hair, several small repaints on the ear and on the palette, in the background, and along the borders. Very thin retouches are visible on the nose, on the lip and on the forehead, and on the shirt. The signature and the datation fluoresce : they may have been added later, maybe by the artist himself, later. An old signature "Bernard / B. de Monvel" is clearly visible above the signature. A scratch, visible on the picture, and a light knick by the neck and on the brushes. A long vertical folding, by the border, in visible on the left. The painting is in a silver frame, probably the original frame.
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Durant l'été 1932, Bernard Boutet de Monvel peignit deux autoportraits pour l’exposition qui devait ouvrir ses portes quelques mois plus tard à la Reinhardt Galleries, New York. A côté de l’iconique figure de dandy qu’il présente devant la place Vendôme (lot 25), il choisit de se peindre de manière plus intimiste, de profil, sa palette et ses pinceaux à la main, dans son atelier du passage de la Visitation, Paris. Il est à l’œuvre, en bras de chemise. A son poignet, on peut voir sa Tank cintrée de platine de la maison Cartier. 

Comme à son habitude, il étudie sa pose à l’aide de photographies à partir desquelles il réalise des dessins préparatoires (voir l’illustration ci-dessous).

Le tableau fut conçu pour être présenté avec un pendant, un profil de son frère Roger, titré La robe de chambre, le montrant sur fond de bibliothèque d’où se détache le nom Byron’s, évoquant tant l’élégance du modèle que La vie de Lord Byron, qu’il publia en 1924.

In 1932, Boutet de Monvel decides to execute two self-portraits for the upcoming exhibition at the Reinhardt Galleries, New York : this one, and the Self-Portrait, Place Vendôme (see lot 25). The painting was conceived from a photograph (see illustration below). It shows how the artist managed to reach such a photorealistic composition.