Ivan Pavlovich Pokhitonov

Probably Paris, Galerie Georges Petit
Acquired by the father of the present owner in the 1980s

The panel is sound. There is a layer of surface dirt and the varnish has discoloured. There are some old surface scratches to the upper right corner and two small indents on the upper left inner frame edge. UV light reveals no signs of retouching. Held in a gold painted moulded plaster frame.
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The present moorland hunting scene with its distinctive small bridge is the subject of two later works by Pokhitonov painted in Brussels in 1922-1923. The reappearance of this much earlier work is an exciting rediscovery and it is a mark of the artist's delight in the present composition that he returned to the subject over thirty years later. This was not unusual in his final years when, unable to make extended journeys, Pokhitonov produced paintings based on old photographs, copies of pictures in his collection or from large black and white reproductions of paintings he no longer owned.

The offered lot allows us at last to pinpoint Pokhitonov's movements in the South West of France between 1885-1891. The artist often stayed in this beautiful region for several months at a time, before returning to his dealer Georges Petit in Paris with new paintings which would be sold for the most part to American collectors. Pont Long is marshy region to the north of Pau on the confluence of several rivers, which looks out onto the majestic Pyrenees and is famous for its excellent meat and hunting.

Pokhitonov was passionate about hunting and it is a recurring motif in his work from the 1870s onwards, whether in marshes, dunes or the Russian countryside. This favourite subject is exceptionally well executed in the present work, from the detailed depiction of the tall grass and bushes, to the precise representation of each stone in the bridge and the minute detail of the hunters' apparel. His ability to achieve this degree of artistry within the restrictions of a small panel elevates Pokhitonov to the ranks of the greatest landscape painters of the nineteenth century.

We are grateful to Olivier Bertrand, author of the forthcoming catalogue raisonné on Ivan Pokhitonov, for providing this note. The present work will be included in the catalogue raisonné.