Oskar Kokoschka

Leicester Gallery, London
Galleria Annunciata, Milan
E. & A. Silberman Galleries, New York (and sold: Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc., New York, November 20, 1968, lot 48)
Acquired at the above sale

Canvas has been relined and placed on a new stretcher, but surface retains a rich and textured impasto. Surface is clean overall. Under UV light: several scattered strokes of original pigment and areas of pooled varnish fluoresce; however, no inpainting is apparent. Overall, the 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.
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.

Painted in a series of deft expressionistic brushstrokes that display Kokoschka's remarkable touch and highly perceptive attention to detail, this portrait is a fine example of the artist's unique ability to capture in paint the character of his sitter.  The robust colors and dappling of light in Italienische bauers frau imbue the subject with a healthy vitality, while the carefully layered brushstrokes of her face reflect a quiet humanity.  Kokoschka's preoccupation with expressing the deeper psychological truth of his sitters prompted his biographer J. P. Hodin to characterize his portraits as "revelations of the individual...[reflecting] the temper beneath the mask" (Hodin, Kokoschka: The Artist and His Time, 1966, p. 111). 

In the years following the conclusion of the First World War, Kokoschka's figures became increasingly sculptural and painterly as he was drawn to depicting the heroic in favor of the diminutive and decorative.  Powerful, solid forms like the farm girl in the present work are typical in Kokoschka's works of the 1930s.  Despite the loose, sketchy lines defining the girl's arms and the landscape to her right, the work has a monumental stillness rooted in the intense brushwork on her torso and head.  Of this engaging contradiction in Kokoschka's compositions, the curator Richard Calvocoressi wrote, "Not the least remarkable aspect...is Kokoschka's brushwork, the superficial untidiness and spontaneity of which conceals a deft, assured touch which unites all the disparate elements of form, color and tone into a resonant whole" (Oskar Kokoschka 1886-1980, exh. cat., Tate Gallery, London, 1986, p. 139).