Oscar Dominguez

Estate of the artist
Sale : Maurice Rheims, Hôtel Drouot, Paris, 14 November 1960, lot 51
Acquired at this sale by the present owner

The canvas is not lined. Under UV light, several thin strips fluoresce along the right, bottom and left edges, suggesting repaired frame abrasion. A patch also fluoresces in the dark red-brown pigment to the left of the bull's horn, with two smaller spots in the dark blue and grey motifs on the animal's back. Otherwise this work is in very good 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. 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."

"An hour later, I'm at Picasso's place.  He's with Oscar Dominguez, a big strapping guy from Tenerife, also passionate about bullfighting... We see him more and more often here.  A very talented painter, he's also learning a lot from Picasso [...].  [Picasso] has a weakness for this uncouth bear of a man - a gigantic noble head, disproportionate, decorated with a small moustache, who wears, by the way, a heavy plush coat -, but charming and with a robust vitality.  He likes his wit, his black humour and perhaps also that violent and disturbing element which comes from his Spanish blood... Despite his peaceful appearance, a demon lives in this big body, and no one is safe when he drinks, for the demon is unleashed."
Brassaï in Brassaï, Conversations avec Picasso, Paris, Gallimard, 1964, republished 1997, p. 257

Bullfighting is a major theme in the work of Oscar Dominguez.  Like Pablo Picasso, proud of his Spanish roots and an avid fan of this sensual and ferocious sport, Oscar Dominguez revisited this theme frenetically up to the end of his life, exploring and evolving his approach.  In image after image, all aspects of this spectacle are imbued with a tragic intensity culminating here with the death of the torero.  The black figure of the triumphant animal invades the composition. The matador, inert in his fiery coat, is dying on his back like a premonition of the tragic death of the painter himself the following year.