ARISTIDE MAILLOL | Nu debout se coiffant (Baigneuse aux bras levés)

Galerie Dina Vierny, Paris
Private Collection, California (acquired from the above)
Thence by descent

John Rewald, Maillol, Paris, 1939, illustrations of other versions pp. 70 & 71
Hermann Uhde-Bernays, Aristide Maillol, Dresden, 1957, illustration of the smaller version p. 43
Waldemar George, Aristide Maillol, Neuchâtel, 1965, illustration of another cast p. 199
Denis Chevalier, Maillol, New York, 1970, illustration of another cast p. 79
Aristide Maillol: 1861-1944 (exhibition catalogue), Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, 1975, illustration of another cast p. 83
Waldemar George, Aristide Maillol et l'âme de la sculpture, Neuchâtel, 1977, illustration of another cast p. 201
Bertrand Lorquin, Maillol aux Tuileries, Paris, 1991, illustration of another cast p. 14
Aristide Maillol (exhibition catalogue), Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lausanne, Lausanne, 1996, mentioned p. 52; illustration of the smaller version p. 53
Bertrand Lorquin, Aristide Maillol, London, 2002, illustration of another cast p. 102
Le Musée Maillol s'expose (exhibition catalogue), Musée Maillol, Paris, 2008, illustration of another cast in color p. 65

This work is in excellent condition. Attractive variegated brown patina. Some extremely minor surface dust in crevices. Some extremely minor scratches to the figure's elbow. Otherwise, fine.
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 beauty of the female body fascinated Maillol throughout his career, and the present sculpture is one of his most idealized representations. The sculpture is a medley of formal quotations that call to mind some of the greatest sculpture of the classical age. Standing with a raised foot forward and her arms akimbo behind her head, the figure could be considered a reinterpretation of the Nike of Samothrace (see fig. 1). Maillol's idealized first rendering of this figure at the beginning of the twentieth century is emphatically avant-garde, characterized by a sleek linearity that would define the Modernist aesthetic. Bertrand Lorquin describes the true artistry at the heart of Maillol's work, "Maillol's sculpture achieves an ideal balance through the accuracy of its proportions as well as the harmony of its compositions. Paul Valéry once said that sculpture is an art full of surprises, and at each moment the sculptor chooses his viewpoint among an infinite array of possibilities. A Maillol statue is a perpetual revelation of the type of beauty which the sculptor invented" (Bertrand Lorquin, Aristide Maillol, op. cit., pp. 102-03).

The authenticity of this work has been confirmed by Olivier Lorquin.