Ivan Pavlovich Pokhitonov

Collection of Eugénie Wulfert and Boris Wulfert Pokhitonov, Belgium
Private collection, Belgium
Acquired from the above by the present owner

Liège, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Parc de la Boverie, Société Royale des Beaux-Arts. Salon Triennal de 1924, 10 May - 29 June 1924, no.30, Etude d’arbres

The very top edge of the board is unpainted, below this unpainted area is a thin strip of masking tape which obscures the first few milimetres of the paint layer. There is a pinhole in each of the upper corners of the board, in the unpainted area, and there are two pinholes in each of the lower corners. The area around the two lowermost pinholes is unpainted. There are a couple of very minor areas of paint loss in the grass in the foreground, in the sky and at the left edge. Very fine craquelure is visible in places, most notably the area of sky. Inspection under UV light reveals a couple of minor spots of restoration to the paint losses in the grass in the foreground. The board is hinged to the mount at each corner. Held in an attractive gilt wooden frame. Unexamined out of frame.
"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."

A riot of colour, this bright and freely-painted study shows Pokhitonov at his furthest remove from the Barbizon School and closer to some of his Impressionist contemporaries such as Monet and Renoir with whom he had exhibited in 1882 at the gallery of his Paris dealer, Georges Petit. To depict the sun at its highest point is a challenge, but as Witmeur goes on to say in his appreciation of Pokhitonov’s work, his paintings are about sensation as well as detail, in which case this is as much a study of exuberant joy as it is of pine trees:  ‘A small piece becomes for him an inexhaustible source of detail rich in sensations just as the human heart is rich in the nuances of feeling' ('Un peintre russe, chantre de la Wallonie', La Vie Wallonne, March 1924).

The present lot will be included in the third volume of the catalogue raisonné currently being prepared by Olivier Bertrand.