Boris Dmitrievich Grigoriev

ABA Gallery, New York
Acquired directly from the above by the present owner, circa 2005

Tamara Galeyeva, Grigoriev, St. Petersburg: Zolotoi Vek, 2007, no. 212, illustrated

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This painting on panel is in beautiful state, although it is very dirty and dull. Some slight instability has developed in the lower left and lower center, and there are few paint losses here. Other than this, what appears to be a rather robust paint layer is in good shape yet will respond well to restoration.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

Until the middle of the 1920s, the objective environment had interested Grigoriev solely as an additional characteristic of his illustrated subjects or as a component of a composition's interior. In 1924-25, due to his growing interest in the distinctive problems of artistic language, he began to create a series of still lifes. At first they were represented sporadically at solo exhibitions in New York and Paris, but at the 1927 World of Art exhibition in Paris they took center stage, and one composition was specifically singled out by art critic I. Zharnovski for its' "clean artistic technique" ("World of Art in Paris," Latest News, Paris, June 14, 1927). From the end of the 1920s, still lifes were exceedingly important and prevalent in Grigoriev's oeuvre, and, according to another critic who carefully observed his work, they showed his "full mastery of the technique," "true enchantment by color" and the realization of the formula for moving "from color to light."

In the 1930s, Grigoriev painted Still life with Berries and Apples at Borisella in Cagnes-sur-Mer. His composition is minimalistic yet very expressive, underscoring the influence of Fauvism on his oeuvre at the time. On a dark, almost black metal tray, he creates an elegant design of scattered branches with tiny crimson berries and scarcely placed emerald greens and yellows. In essence, Grigoriev reduces his forms to a series of geometric shapes that explore the color and texture of the paint. The intricate web of branches and the apple on the lower right corner of the tray create a sense of balance throughout. The tray, in absence of a horizon line, is shown from above as if suspended in space, revealing the pulsing energy of the painting's mass.