Christian Bérard

(Possibly) Boris Kochno, Paris 
Maurice Robinot, Paris
Galerie Albert Loeb, Paris (acquired by 1983)
Acquired by 1987

(Possibly) Boston, Institute of Contemporary Art, Christian Bérard, 1950, no. 13
Paris, Galerie Albert Loeb, Christian Bérard: Portraits, 1983, no. 20, illustrated in color in the catalogue

Boris Kochno, Christian Bérard, Paris, 1987, no. 99, illustrated p. 105

The painting is in good original condition. When examined under UV light, there is minor scattered retouching to the background and one small area to the lower left quadrant of the red robe. Very minor paint loss along the lower portion of the left edge. There is craquelure to the paint approx. 3 in. long at the extreme lower left edge of the board and another in the extreme lower right. There is a light surface scratch (approx 4 in.) to the paint in the background of the upper left quadrant and another line of indentation to the paint (approx. 6 in. long) in the lower left quadrant.
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.

In Paris’ epicenter of stage, fashion and café society in the 1930s and 40s, Christian Bérard emerges as a prodigiously talented artist with tremendous capabilities across varying fields. While his theatrical scenery and costume designs, as well as his textile designs and interior decorations, remained his primary devotion, his fashion illustrations graced the pages of Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar, inspiring the couture collections of such designers as Christian Dior, Elsa Schiaparelli and Nina Ricci. These often groundbreaking creative pursuits also played a pivotal role in his development as a painter. In 1920, Bérard enrolled at the Académie Ranson in Paris where he received instruction from artists Édouard Vuillard and Maurice Denis. The influence of these Nabis artists is evident in the rich coloration and flat swaths of vivid color visible throughout Le Clown rouge. The harmonious background, made up of shades of browns and grey, is simple and expressive. A painter of primarily portraits and self-portraits, Bérard executes his figures with insight and poetic skill, in a manner that reveals a deeply felt humanism. The sensitive, fluid and elegant line of his figures recalls the stylized forms that appear in his work as a fashion illustrator. The artist was known to reuse his supports, painting images on both sides or simply painting over a previous work, as visible on the back of the present work. His early work was collected by Gertrude Stein, and the portraits he did of his friends Jean Cocteau, Coco Chanel, Cecil Beaton and Horst P. Horst are in illustrious private and museum collections such as the Museum of Modern Art, New York and the Menil Collection, Houston.

Le Clown rouge comes to Sotheby’s from the collection of Kenneth Paul Block and Morton Ribyat. Together for more than sixty years, the couple met at a concert in New York in the 1940s. As chief features artist for Women’s Wear Daily, Kenneth Paul Block was one of the most influential fashion illustrators of the twentieth century. His sophisticated drawings of the latest styles and the women who wore them helped visually define the times. Until he retired in 1992, Kenneth drew the collections of major American and European designers—from Norell, Halston and Galanos, to Balenciaga, Chanel and Saint Laurent. Morton Ribyat was a textile designer who ran the design departments at two major firms. A skilled draughtsman, he produced beautifully detailed work that was transformed into dress fabric, curtains and wallpaper. Kenneth and Morton regularly attended theater, classical music and dance performances. Their interest in both stage design and fashion illustration influenced the art they collected. Le Clown rouge had a prominent place in the foyer of Kenneth and Morton’s home.