Henri Matisse

Josse & Gaston Bernheim-Jeune (acquired from the artist on 20th September 1923, see fig. 1)
Bernheim-Jeune, Paris (acquired from the above in 1924)
Henri-Louis Mermod, Lausanne (acquired from the above on 24th October 1934)
Private Collection, Switzerland
Sale: Galerie Kornfeld, Bern, 18th June 2004, lot 109
Purchased at the above sale by the late owner

Paris, Bernheim-Jeune, Henri Matisse, 1924, no. 38

Guy-Patrice & Michel Dauberville, Henri Matisse chez Bernheim-Jeune, Paris, 1995, vol. II, no. 431, illustrated p. 941

The canvas is not lined and there are no signs of retouching under UV light. Apart from some tiny paint losses, one to the left of the upper edge, the other to the right, with some very minor associated scratches, 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."

Property from the Estate of Haaken Christensen sold to benefit Médecins Sans Frontières

HAAKEN ANDREAS CHRISTENSEN
1924-2008

One of the pre-eminent figures of the Norwegian art world, Haaken Christensen pioneered a highly influential gallery which has thrived at the centre of the Oslo cultural scene for more than 40 years. The gallery's exhibitions combined French modernists with leading contemporary Norwegian artists such as Jens Johannessen and Jakob Weidemann, creating an exciting and innovative interchange between international and indigenous art. This novel concept was to earn Christensen national recognition, and his exhibitions at the gallery were the springboard for a group of Norwegian artists who went on to gain wider international acclaim and are known locally as Stall Haaken (Haaken's Stable).

Christensen's lifelong interest in the arts began after his return to Norway after the war, when he enrolled at the University of Oslo to study for a master's degree in Art History. His chosen thesis on Gustave Courbet involved a period of study in the French capital where he immersed himself in the Bibliothèque Nationale. This experience in Paris made a strong impact on the young Christensen and was instrumental in establishing the strong ties with French art and culture which are so evident in the pictures in his personal collection as represented over the following pages.

While Christensen had no background in the arts, he adapted quickly to his subject. Not long after graduating he was commissioned to sell a number of paintings from the collection of Sigri Welhaven, including an important Matisse oil entitled La Coiffure (1907, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart). Christensen sold the picture to the shipbuilder Ragnar Moltzau and used the proceeds to start his career as an art dealer in earnest.  He befriended Daniel Henry Kahnweiler in Paris and subscribed to print editions by Picasso which form the basis of an extraordinary print collection to be sold at Sotheby's in October. By the early 1960s, Christensen had opened his first gallery with an exhibition devoted to Picasso linocuts. It was an exceptionally busy if rewarding time, as the gallery hosted shows of Gundersen, Ludvig Eikaas and prints by Chagall, Miró and Picasso in its inaugural year. Christensen was praised for his contribution to the gallery scene in Oslo both in terms of the quality of his exhibitions and his artistic judgement.

Continuous travel and exposure resulted in Christensen's advice being sought by a number of influential collectors who would often engage him as an agent. In due course more or less all the major Norwegian collectors had some dealings that touched on him. Hans Rasmus Astrup acknowledged Christensen's role in the acquisitions made by his museum and Christensen was on the board of the Astrup Fearnley Museum of Modern Art from its opening in 1993 to 1995. Christensen was made a Chevalier of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1987.

Christensen's gift of the entire proceeds of the sale of this collection to the humanitarian group Médecins Sans Frontières is a gesture of extraordinary generosity. He had been paying an annual membership for a number of years, impressed by their non-political standpoint and low administrative costs which allowed for the maximum amount of gift aid to be used where it mattered most.  

Further lots from the estate of Haaken Christensen will be sold in London in the Impressionist & Modern Art Evening sale (25th June), Impressionist & Modern Art, Day sale (26th June), as well as the Contemporary Day sales (3rd July) and the Old Master, Modern & Contemporary Prints sale (2nd October).

Henri Matisse, LA PLAGE D'ÉTRETAT AVEC BAIGNEURS:

Following his daughter's operation on her larynx in 1920, Matisse took his wife and daughter to the coastal resort of Étretat on the Normandy coast. The hotel room on the beach front provided an ideal subject for a series of paintings of his room of the type that would become so familiar in his later Nice period, but Matisse also ventured out to paint a series of grand cliff and beach scenes. This subject had been a source of inspiration to an earlier generation of Impressionists such as Boudin and Monet. Yet perhaps more importantly for Matisse, Courbet had also painted the scene, and it was the 19th century artist who was the greater influence on Matisse in the earlier part of his career. Matisse owned several works by the artist, and his influence is clearly discernable in Matisse's earlier landscapes.

Whilst at Étretat, Matisse painted a few landscapes as in the present work, and then also varied the formula by making the landscape the setting for still lives featuring a variety of marine life. As he wrote in a letter to a friend at this time: 'I've been at Étretat for two weeks now amid green-topped white cliffs beside a tender blue and turquoise green sea from which I can see emerging superb creamy-white turbots, iron-grey dogfish, lesser spotted dogfish and skate all over the harbour' (quoted in Hilary Spurling, Matisse The Master, London, 2005, p. 236). His fascination with the marine life reflects the work of his early career; Matisse was initially a realist painter of still lives, inspired by artists such as de Heem, Chardin and Kalf. His stay in Étretat can thus be seen as Matisse's last encounter with northern realism, and these works lay the ghosts of his 19th century predecessors to rest before he moved to the sunnier climes of Nice.