Pablo Picasso

Étienne de Beaumont, Paris (acquired directly from the artist)
Perls Galleries, New York
Sindin Galleries, New York
Brett Mitchell Collection, Inc., Cleveland
Acquired from the above in 1989

New York, Perls Galleries, Master Drawings: Calder, Leger, Matisse, Miro, Modigliani, Pascin, Picasso, 1979, no. 38, illustrated in the catalogue

Executed on cream wove paper. Hinged to its mat at the verso of the upper left and upper right corners. All four edges are deckled. There is a very faint mat staining around the perimeter of the sheet. There is a vertical partially repaired tear to the paper approximately an inch long, in the upper left corner. There is a minor loss to the paper at the upper part of the left edge and to the lower right corner. There is a diagonal tear to the paper approximately 1/2 inch in length at the middle of the right edge. There is uniform light time fading to the paper and very light scattered spots of foxing. There is minor surface dirt at the middle of the left edge. The work is in 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.

The infamous aristocrat, patron of the arts and supreme bon vivant Étienne de Beaumont is most well-known for hosting extravagant masquerade parties with costumes designed by Coco Chanel and Picasso himself (see figs. 1 & 2). In 1918, he introduced jazz to Parisian night life, staging a performance with a group of African American soldiers. A champion of the Ballet Russes, Beaumont designed a production for the company in 1924, Le Beau Danube, and served as the basis for the main character in Raymond Radiguet’s novel Le Bal du Comte d’Orgel. He and his wife Edith were early producers and patrons of avant-garde film productions. Selling much of his family’s art of to fund new acquisitions, he built an important collection of works by Man Ray, Picasso, Gris, Braque and others.

An iconographically rich drawing featuring many of Picasso’s most adored motifs including the artist’s model along with a multitude of plants and animals, this work serves as a conglomerate group portrait which may represent the rich and multifaceted nature of Étienne de Beaumont’s life. The hard edged rounded nose of the central female character is reminiscent of Dora Maar, Picasso’s lover at the time of the work’s execution, and arguably one of his most important subjects. The half-naked male model hands the reluctant beauty a handful of flowers, asserting Picasso and Maar’s complicated discontentment with one another.