亨利·馬蒂斯

signed H Matisse and dated 51
charcoal on paper
64.8 by 50cm.; 25 ½ by 19 5/8in.
Executed in 1951.

M. Knoedler & Co., New York

Pierre Schlumberger (acquired from the above circa 1959)

Thence by descent to the present owner

Louis Aragon, Henri Matisse, A Novel, vol. II, New York, 1972, no. 193, illustrated p. 237 (titled La Platane)

Executed on cream wove paper, laid down on another sheet of paper hinged the mount. There are some repaired tears on the left edge and the upper left corner has been reconstructed, as has a very small area above the sitter's head. This work is in good, stable condition.
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.

Matisse established a permanent residence in the Place Charles-Félix in Nice in 1921. Attracted to the rich atmosphere of this coastal town, the artist spent much of the subsequent decades here, producing some of the most iconic works of his career. Though images of the resort town and ocean beyond are occasionally visible in these works, often through an open window, Matisse often chose to portray his models indoors. The intimacy of this arrangement allowed the artist to focus on the human form, depicting a number of female models who sat for him. Nu debout is a beautifully sensual example of Matisse's drawings of nudes, and displays Matisse's singular ability to capture his model in a natural, casual pose, while at the same time depicting her with a great sense of elegance and grace.

Throughout the 1930s, 1940s and early 1950s Matisse drew obsessively, producing numerous works on paper using a variety of materials, but favoring two in particular – charcoal and ink. Ink, applied using either a brush or pen, was used to depict a variety of subjects from nudes and portraits to still-lifes, while charcoal was almost exclusively employed to depict the female figure. Matisse fully exploited the qualities of both techniques and produced many remarkable images; however it was with charcoal that he created the definitive works on paper of his career.

Dissimilar though they were, these two techniques were inter-related in practice. In his article Notes d’un peintre sur son dessin published in 1939, Matisse described the advantages of these different media: "the [ink] drawings are always preceded by studies made in a less rigorous medium than pure line, such as charcoal or stump drawing, which allows me to consider simultaneously the character of the model, her human expression, the quality of surrounding light, the atmosphere and all that can only be expressed by drawing". In the charcoal drawings he established "the lines or the special values distributed over the whole canvas or paper and which forms its orchestration, its architecture" (quoted in Jack Flam, ed., Matisse on Art, Berkeley, 1995, pp. 130-132).