Henri Matisse

Pierre Matisse, New York (the artist's son, by descent from the artist)
Pierre-Noël Matisse, New York (by descent from the above; sale: Christie's, New York, 7th November 2007, lot 448)
Purchased at the above sale by the present owner

The canvasboard is sound. Some original pigments fluoresce under UV light but no retouching is apparent. There are small specks of loss in the areas of black pigment where bubbling has occurred, notably around the hat, and some minor shrinkage to the thickest areas of pigment in the dress and the umbrella. There is a fine surface scratch in the foliage above the umbrella and another to the right of the figure. There are a few small fly spots in the grass of the lower left quadrant and two pinholes in the upper right corner. This work is in good overall 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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Imbued with an atmosphere of gentle nostalgia, Femme à l‘ombrelle rose depicts a young woman posed within the verdant surroundings of a garden in Nice. The figure could arguably be identified as that of Antoinette Arnoux, an eighteen-year-old model who commonly appears in Matisse’s paintings of this period. Ornamented with an extravagant hat and a bright pink umbrella, the centralised female figure serves as a decorative motif whilst revealing the artist's skill in capturing the ephemeral qualities of light and colour. More specifically, the juxtaposition of the silver trees with the white sky, the brushed pink umbrella and the soft vividness of the greens highlight Matisse’s eye for colour and ability to convey the immediacy of his personal visual experience.

Between 1916 and 1932, Henri Matisse made annual expeditions to the South of France and these excursions embody a defining period in the evolution of the artist’s creative and stylistic development. Inspired by the physical presence of the region, his paintings reveal a debt to Nice’s light, colour and the environs of the artist’s everyday life. ‘Nice is a beautiful place! What a gentle and soft light inspire of its brightness! [...]Here it is silvered! Even the objects that it touches are very coloured, such as the greens for example’ (quoted in Henri Matisse: The Early Years in Nice 1916 – 1930 (exhibition catalogue), National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1986-87, p. 23).