Pierre Roy

Billy Wilder, Los Angeles
Private Collection, Los Angeles (acquired from the above in 1985)
Private Collection, Los Angeles (by descent from the above and sold: Sotheby's, New York, May 11, 2000, lot 91)
Acquired at the above sale

London, Wildenstein & Co., Exhibition of Paintings by Pierre Roy, 1934, no. 10
Paris, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Le Rêve d'une ville, 1994-95
New York, Richard L. Feigen & Co., Pierre Roy, 1880-1950, 1992-93

Canvas is not lined, the surface is slightly dirty. Under UV light there are numerous pin dots of inpainting in the wall above the figure at the center of the canvas. There are also several strokes in the black rectangle near upper left and a 2 x 1 cm area at the bottom right corner of the green door. There are several other spots of retouching mostly along the edges. The work is in generally 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.

Billy Wilder, one of the greatest directors in Hollywood during its Golden Age, was an early owner of the present work. Wilder's films received dozens of Academy Award nominations and he himself achieved the remarkable feat of winning a trifecta of Academy Awards for best director, best picture and best screenplay all for the same film, The Apartment, in 1961. He aso won Academy Awards for best screenplay for Sunset Boulevard in 1951 and for best screenplay and best director for The Lost Weekend in 1946. 

His first major success came with Ninotchka in 1939 starring Greta Garbo in her first comedy.  In 1944 he directed Double Indemnity which he also co-wrote with Raymond Chandler. A major hit, it helped define the film noir genre. Five years later he co-wrote and directed Sunset Boulevard, the classic Hollywood tale of soured vanity and ambition. In the following decade Wilder turned back to comedy, directing several classics including The Seven Year Itch in 1955, Some Like it Hot in 1959 and The Apartment in 1961.

Later in life Wilder earned renown for his eclectic art collection. As he once observed, “I never collected paintings, sculptures African or Oceanic art to protect me against inflation. When I’m crazy about a canvas, I could never envision selling it... I have some Impressionists, some Picassos from every period, some mobiles by Calder. I also collect tiny Japanese trees, glass paperweights, and Chinese vases. Name an object, and I collect it" (quoted in Michel Ciment, “Interview with Billy Wilder,” Positif, July/August 1983, pp. 15-28).