- 170
Édouard Vuillard
Estimate
500,000 - 700,000 USD
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Description
- Edouard Vuillard
- La couseuse devant la fenêtre
- Signed E. Vuillard and dated 1910 (lower right)
- Oil on board laid down on panel
- 21 7/8 by 29 in.
- 55.5 by 74cm
Provenance
Galerie Bernheim-Jeune, Paris (acquired directly from the artist in 1910)
Georges Hasen, St Petersburg (acquired in 1911)
Sale: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, June 1, 1932, lot 54
Mme Stewart, Paris
Sale: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, June 10, 1937, lot 64
Galerie Paul Rosenberg, Paris, until November 1940
Thereafter restituted to the Rosenberg heirs
Georges Hasen, St Petersburg (acquired in 1911)
Sale: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, June 1, 1932, lot 54
Mme Stewart, Paris
Sale: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, June 10, 1937, lot 64
Galerie Paul Rosenberg, Paris, until November 1940
Thereafter restituted to the Rosenberg heirs
Exhibited
St. Petersburg, Institut Français, L'Exposition centennale (peinture française 1812-1912), 1912, no. 84
Brussels, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Art français contemporain, 1938, no. 90, illustrated in the catalogue
Brussels, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Art français contemporain, 1938, no. 90, illustrated in the catalogue
Literature
Répertoire des biens spoliés en France pendant la Guerre 1939-1945, vol. II, Berlin, 1947, no. 3830, 31.954, p. 172
Jacques Salomon, Vuillard, Paris, 1961, illustrated p. 104
Antoine Salomon & Guy Cogeval, Édouard Vuillard, The Inexhaustible Glance, Critical Catalogue of Paintings and Pastels, vol. II, Paris, 2003, no. IX-31, illustrated p. 1046
Jacques Salomon, Vuillard, Paris, 1961, illustrated p. 104
Antoine Salomon & Guy Cogeval, Édouard Vuillard, The Inexhaustible Glance, Critical Catalogue of Paintings and Pastels, vol. II, Paris, 2003, no. IX-31, illustrated p. 1046
Condition
Work is in very good condition. On board laid down on cradled panel. Some slight warping to board at upper left corner. Artist's pinholes visible around perimeter. Very faint 2 inch horizontal scratch at extreme lower left corner. Areas of visible board appear time darkened. Under UV light: areas of exposed board fluoresce but no inpainting is apparent.
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.
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.
Catalogue Note
La Couseuse devant la fenêtre is a superb example of the interior scenes for which Vuillard is celebrated. The female seamstress is most probably Vuillard's mother, with whom he lived until her death. Vuillard's mother was a successful corsetière and Vuillard drew inspiration from the busy domestic enterprise.
As a founding member of the Nabis, Vuillard shared the group's interest in decorative motifs. Here, the intricate patterning of the vibrant textiles shows the influence of the British Arts and Crafts movement. Similarly, the architectural lines of the table and the curving female form evoke the calligraphic and flowing lines of Japanese prints. The flatness of the picture plane, evident in the compressed space between the sloping rug and the windows, similarly owes a debt to Art Nouveau. The layering of patterns in this tightly-woven composition creates an atmosphere of hushed intimacy, and indeed Vuillard's contemporaries labelled him an intimiste.
As Kimberly Jones notes, "Vuillard's women are perpetually absorbed in their occupations and...remain totally unconscious of the presence of the artist and the gaze of the viewer" (Guy Cogeval, Édouard Vuillard (exhibition catalogue), Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal, 2003, p. 131). Far different from the portraits Vuillard would be commissioned to paint in later years, the series of domestic interiors focus upon craft rather than identity (see fig. 1). Elizabeth Wynne Easton notes, "The sewing paintings are icons of the inwardness that informed Vuillard's personal approach to Symbolism" (Elizabeth Wynne Easton, The Intimate Interiors of Edouard Vuillard (exhibition catalogue), The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. & The Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, 1989, p. 55). Through the repetitive, quiet and reflective act, the figure is transformed into an inscrutable silhouette ensconced in a lush, patterned background to create a sumptuous image. Art critic Albert Aurier, a contemporary of Vuillard, "admired these women bent over their work in gaslit interiors, seeing them as possessing 'the charm of the unexpected' and expressing 'the bittersweet emotions of life and the tenderness of intimacy'" (Gloria Groom, Edouard Vuillard: Painter-Decorator, New Haven, 1993, p. 28).
As a founding member of the Nabis, Vuillard shared the group's interest in decorative motifs. Here, the intricate patterning of the vibrant textiles shows the influence of the British Arts and Crafts movement. Similarly, the architectural lines of the table and the curving female form evoke the calligraphic and flowing lines of Japanese prints. The flatness of the picture plane, evident in the compressed space between the sloping rug and the windows, similarly owes a debt to Art Nouveau. The layering of patterns in this tightly-woven composition creates an atmosphere of hushed intimacy, and indeed Vuillard's contemporaries labelled him an intimiste.
As Kimberly Jones notes, "Vuillard's women are perpetually absorbed in their occupations and...remain totally unconscious of the presence of the artist and the gaze of the viewer" (Guy Cogeval, Édouard Vuillard (exhibition catalogue), Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal, 2003, p. 131). Far different from the portraits Vuillard would be commissioned to paint in later years, the series of domestic interiors focus upon craft rather than identity (see fig. 1). Elizabeth Wynne Easton notes, "The sewing paintings are icons of the inwardness that informed Vuillard's personal approach to Symbolism" (Elizabeth Wynne Easton, The Intimate Interiors of Edouard Vuillard (exhibition catalogue), The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. & The Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, 1989, p. 55). Through the repetitive, quiet and reflective act, the figure is transformed into an inscrutable silhouette ensconced in a lush, patterned background to create a sumptuous image. Art critic Albert Aurier, a contemporary of Vuillard, "admired these women bent over their work in gaslit interiors, seeing them as possessing 'the charm of the unexpected' and expressing 'the bittersweet emotions of life and the tenderness of intimacy'" (Gloria Groom, Edouard Vuillard: Painter-Decorator, New Haven, 1993, p. 28).