Baron Adolf de Meyer

flush-mounted to brown-paper-backed board, annotated in an unidentified hand in pencil on the reverse, affixed at the top edge only to another mount, inscribed 'Maria by Demeyer' in an unidentified hand in pencil on the mount, matted, circa 1910

Collection of Baron Adolf de Meyer

By descent to his son, Ernest, 1946

Bekins, Los Angeles

Private collection, acquired from the above at a sale of unclaimed property

Sotheby Parke Bernet, The Collection of Baron de Meyer, 20 October 1980, Sale 4437, Lot 89

Acquired by the present owner from the above

Other prints of this image:

Camera Work Number 40 (New York, 1912), pl. 1

Peter C. Bunnell, ed., A Photographic Vision: Pictorial Photography, 1889 - 1923 (Salt Lake City, 1980), p. 64 

Anne Tucker, Target II: 5 American Photographers (The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 1981, in conjunction with the exhibition), p. 19

This luminous, slightly warm-toned gelatin silver print is on a platinum-like matte-surface paper, is in generally excellent condition. There is a pinpoint-sized area of discoloration which appears to have been retouched. When examined in raking light, original retouching is barely visible. The reverse of the print is in generally excellent condition. It is annotated 'G' in an unidentified hand in pencil. The second mount is in generally very good condition. The corners are bumped, and there is wear at the top and right edges, resulting in chipping of the emulsion. There is minor soiling in the center of the top margin. On the reverse, there is wear and soiling at the edges.
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.

The photograph offered here, one of Baron de Meyer's signature images, exemplifies the sophistication and elegance that characterized his best work.  The image's interplay of iridescence and shadow, its brilliance of detail, its bravura rendering of textures—all combine to produce a picture of great visual seduction.  The photograph radiates effortless opulence, a product of the photographer's own international and highly social lifestyle. The model's pose, her luxurious gown, her mystique, presage the extraordinary fashion work de Meyer would produce for Condé Nast in the coming decade. 

The identity of the model, 'Maria,' is unknown.  The present image was titled 'The Cup' when it was reproduced in Camera Work Number 40 in 1912.   The pose of a beautiful woman with a cup echoes other well-known Photo-Secessionist images of elegantly-robed women with bowls, vases, or other objects, including Steichen's The Brass Bowl and Cover Design from Camera Work Number 14, and George Seeley's The Black Bowl and The Firefly from Camera Work Number 20, and his Girl with Bowl, Autumn, and No. 347, all from Camera Work Number 29. 

Early prints of any of de Meyer's works are scarce, especially in the large format of the photograph offered here.  The present print comes from the legendary 1980 de Meyer auction in these rooms, a landmark sale of the contents of a trunk from unclaimed storage.  When Baron de Meyer died in Los Angeles in 1946, his adopted son Ernest gathered his personal belongings and stored them in a large steamer trunk that de Meyer had owned for most of his life.  The trunk was then turned over to a Bekins storage facility in Los Angeles, where it remained for more than 30 years until Ernest's death. The contents of the trunk re-surfaced in the late 1970s, in a warehouse sale of unclaimed property, and were subsequently consigned to auction with Sotheby Parke Bernet.  Lots 109 and 116 in the present sale were also offered in this memorable auction. 

Of the approximately 160 lots that comprised the Sotheby's 1980 sale, only five were what could be considered signature images by de Meyer in the large format of the print offered here. At the time of this writing, no other early prints of 'The Cup' have been located, in any size or any medium.  Most often seen and reproduced is the photogravure from Camera Work Number 40.