Alfred Stevens

Le Roy, United States (and sold before 1893)
Charles T. Yerkes
Miss Emilie Grigsby (and sold, her sale: Anderson Auction Co., New York, January 22-27, 1912, lot 1142)
J. H. Dunn (until 1914)
Knoedler & Co., Inc., New York (together with Colnaghi & Obach and Scott & Fowles)
Doll & Richards Gallery, Inc., Boston
William Gammell, Providence and Newport (acquired from the above circa 1920)
Mrs. William Gammell (by descent from the above, her husband, in 1945)
Robert Hale Ives Gammell, Boston (by descent from the above, his mother, in 1961)
Elizabeth I-V. Hunter, Walpole, Massachusetts (by descent from the above, in 1981, and sold, Sotheby's, New York, May 23, 1996, lot 282, illustrated)
Acquired at the above sale

Robert Hale Ives Gammell, Boston Painters 1900-1930, Orleans, Massachusetts, 1986, illustrated 

This painting is on a stable panel, is bright and fresh, with no apparent issues under UV.
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.

For many decades, Avant le Bal was held in the collection of the prominent Gammell family of Providence and Newport, Rhode Island.  As Professor William Coles remembered, the painting was acquired by William Gammell, likely prompted by his son, the Boston painter, writer and teacher Robert H. Ives Gammell.  Alfred Stevens' work was appreciated by American artists, including James Abbott McNeill Whistler, John Singer Sargent, and William Merritt Chase who owned at least a dozen of the artist’s compositions.  In turn, the present work suggests Stevens' appreciation for his fellow artists;  the vertical landscape painting behind the woman is clearly signed Corot at lower right, while the adjoining panel appears to be signed Daubigny.