Tamara de Lempicka

Acquired by the present owners in 1992

Rome, Complesso del Vittoriano, Tamara de Lempicka, La regina del moderno, 2011, no. 81, illustrated in colour in the catalogue

Alain Blondel, Tamara de Lempicka, Catalogue raisonné 1921-1979, Lausanne, 1999, no. B.347, illustrated in colour p. 376
Gioia Mori (ed.), Tamara de Lempicka (exhibition catalogue), Turin, 2015, illustrated in colour p. 78
Gioia Mori (ed.), Tamara de Lempicka (exhibition catalogue), Verona, 2015-16, illustrated in colour p. 80

The canvas is not lined. There is a layer of uneven varnish. Under UV examination a few small spots of retouching are visible towards the lower right corner. There are some fine lines of craquelure running horizontally along the upper stretcher bar with a small associated area of lifting just below. There are a few small spots of surface pigment loss to the figure's shirt collar, chin and mustache. There is some minor old frame rubbing along the extreme perimeter. 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."

The present portrait depicts Baron Raoul Kuffner, Tamara de Lempicka’s second husband. The couple met in Paris in 1928, and Lempicka painted her first portrait of Kuffner in the same year (now in the Musée National d’Art Moderne in Paris) as well as an image of the baron’s mistress at the time, Nana de Herrera (Private Collection). They married in 1933 and moved to Los Angeles six years later, where they quickly became acknowledged leaders of social circles there. Tiring of the incessant pace of life in the city, Kuffner insisted that the couple move to New York in 1942, where they purchased an apartment on East 57^th Street. Following the end of the Second World War, Kuffner and de Lempicka travelled frequently between America and Europe. Kuffner died on a trans-Atlantic crossing in 1962 and de Lempicka never re-married.