Mihály Munkácsy

Galerie Sedelmeyer, Paris (after 1888)
Boussod Valadon, Paris (in 1902)
Private Collection, England (in 1914)
Private Collector (and sold, American Art Association, New York, March 23, 1939, lot 45, illustrated, as La Broderie)
Dietrich A. Schmits, Greenwich, Connecticut (aquired at the above sale and sold, his estate, Parke-Bernet, New York, November 6, 1963, lot 33, illustrated, as La Broderie)
Private Collector, New York (acquired at the above sale)

Charles Sedelmeyer, M. von Munkácsy, sein Leben und seine künstlerische Entwicklung, Paris, 1914, p. 106, illustrated p. 107
Lajos Végvári, Katalog der Gemälde und Zeichnungen Mihály Munkácsys, Budapest, 1959, nr. 458, (with incorrect dimensions), illustrated pl. CLXVI

The following condition report was kindly provided by Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc.: This work on panel is in very good condition. The panel has a very old cradle on the reverse, which may be original. The wood is flat. The paint layer is stable and seems noticeably dirty. There is slight disturbance around the edges from previous framing. There is a faint crack, which runs from the bottom center through the lower portion of the woman's dress, and another that runs towards the man's head from the top. Munkácsy paints with a thin rapid style, but since the painting is dirty, no retouches are identifiable beneath the old varnish except in the brim of the hat on the seat on the right side. The reason for this retouch is unknown, but it seems to be cosmetic rather than necessary. It is recommended that this work be cleaned and only retouched in the most necessary spots. It is not expected for much damage to be apparent.
"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."

By 1888, the year Flirt was completed, Munkácsy was widely regarded, from Europe to the United States, as one of the era's most celebrated painters and personalities — a reputation promoted by his powerful dealer Charles Sedelmeyer who, in 1877, bought the artist's Milton for the impressive sum of 30,000 francs (András Székely, Mihály Munkácsy, St. Paul, Minnesota, 1981, p. 12). The following year Munkacksy signed an exclusive ten-year contract with Galerie Sedelmeyer, and their characteristic red seal, marked his compositions of the period, including the present work.  With growing fame came considerable fortune and, following his marriage to the Baroness de Marches, Munkácsy moved into a well-appointed home on the Avenue de Villier in Paris; his studio became a particularly impressive space both for painting and receiving distinguished guests and patrons.  At this time Munkácsy focused on his celebrated "salon pictures," domestic genre scenes of contemporary, bourgeois life familiar to many of his collectors, and works like Flirt, one of a series set in seventeenth century interiors with figures in elaborate period dress.  Many of these compositions depicted scenes of courtship with aptly descriptive titles like L'amour, le vin et les chansons,  Declaration d'amour, and Flirt, in which a lovely young woman's embroidering is interrupted by a visiting cavalier, their shared smiles, the "flirt" of the title, suggesting a budding romance.  While the setting of these works recalls the artist's long-standing interest in historical subjects, the overall light brushwork and use of color and contrasting light and shadow are characteristic of his masterworks of the 1880s.  Works like Flirt were perfectly suited to capture the attention of a late nineteenth century audience entranced by all things seventeenth century — from Dutch art to the historical novels of Sir Walter Scott and Alexandre Dumas.  A brilliant artist supported by a savvy dealer, Munkácsy painted many works in the 1880s that were sold before they left the easel.