Lot 4
  • 4

Kazimir Severinovich Malevich

Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 GBP
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Description

  • Kazimir Malevich
  • Square and Cone
  • pencil on paper
  • 11 by 16cm, 4 1/4 by 6 1/4 in.
  • Executed in 1915

Provenance

Collection of Anna Alexandrovna Leporskaya, Leningrad
Galerie Gmurzynska, Cologne
Acquired from the above

Literature

J-C. Marcadé, Malévitch, Paris: Casterman, 1990, p.150, no.221 illustrated upside down
A.Nakov, Kazimir Malewicz. Catalogue Raisonné, Paris: Adam Biro, 2002, p.336, no.S-659 illustrated
T.Andersen, K.S. Malevich, The Leporskaya Archive, Aarhus: Aarhus University Press, 2011, p.152, no.388 illustrated

Condition

The right hand edge of the sheet is perforated. The sheet has discoloured in line with age and there is a rectangular stain at both right corners where is has been adhered to the mount. There is a vertical crease running through the far left of the sheet which is causing it to undulate slightly. There is a very small paper loss to the lower left corner. The sheet has been lined with Japanese paper, three pinholes are still visible in the top edge. There is a light layer of surface dirt. Held behind glass in a stepped black wooden frame. Unexamined out of frame.
"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."

Catalogue Note

The present work dates from 1915, the year of the famous 0,10 exhibition in Petrograd at which the first Suprematist works were exhibited including the now legendary Black Square. This fundamental Suprematist shape is emblematic of Malevich’s philosophy – so much so that he used it to sign canvases and his Unovis students wore it on their shirt cuffs in a semi-masonic symbol of their allegiance and fealty.

As a general rule Malevich’s drawings are not preparatory studies, but finished compositions and self-sufficient Suprematist artworks in their own right. His drawings of this time are typically contained within a freely drawn rectangular box creating a finite space or universe for the work within which the forms interact. The concept of a composition placed within a boundary was influenced by his earlier study of traditional Russian lubki and icons.