Mikhail Vasilievich Nesterov

Acquired in the mid-1920s by Sonia Colefax, New York
Thence by descent
Sotheby's London, Russian Art Evening Sale, 8 June 2009, lot 11 
Acquired at the above sale by the present owner

New York, Grand Central Palace, The Russian Art Exhibition, 8 March - 15 April 1924, no.551

Exhibition catalogue Russian Art Exhibition, New York, 1924, no.551 listed as A Lonely Woman

Original canvas. There are frame abrasions along all four edges with minor paint losses in places. There are stretcher bar marks running along the left, right and bottom edges. There are a few minor areas of scattered craquelure. There is a covering of surface dirt with spots of dirt and household paint in places. Inspection under UV light reveals retouching to the centre, to the top of the trees below the sky in the top left, to the right of the woman's face, the right and left edges as well as further retouching elsewhere. Held in a gilt 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."

The early 1920s were a period of withdrawal and material hardship for Nesterov. Deeply affected by the national and private upheavals of recent years, he found solace in painting, executing a series of works on the theme of private contemplation which includes the present lot and its male counterpart, The Thinker: Portrait of Ivan Ilyin (fig.1). A Lonely Woman was one of nine paintings by Nesterov included in the remarkable 1924 Russian Art Exhibition in New York. In the words of one American commentator: 'the feeling of an older Russia is reflected in the spiritual apparitions of Nesterov, as his figures stand or move among the delicate birch trees...' (The Art News, No.22, 8 March 1924). Sonia Colefax was one of the most colourful Russian émigrés to have arrived in America in the early 1920s. Educated in Europe before the Revolution, she emigrated to New York in 1922 and owned a dacha on Long Island, designed by an émigré Russian architect. It became a mecca for Russian artists and American high society, who were entertained by the resident gypsy singer and catered for by a Russian cook. Colefax built the core of her collection of Russian art between 1924 and 1930. The present lot was purchased after the 1924 Russian Art Exhibition in New York together with Boris Kustodiev's In the Provinces (1920) and Sergei Vinogradov's Lady in Interior (1924).