Lot 42
  • 42

VLADIMIR WEISBERG | The City

Estimate
40,000 - 60,000 USD
bidding is closed

Description

  • Vladimir Weisberg
  • The City
  • oil on canvas
  • Canvas: 18 3/4 by 18in., 48 by 46cm
  • Framed: 24 1/4 by 23 1/2 in., 61.5 by 59.5cm
signed with initials and dated '79' t.r.; the stretcher further inscribed with working notes, numbered '22' and dated '25 / IV / 78', with remnants of a Soviet export labeloil on canvasThe late 1970s are a lovely period in Weisberg’s gradual progression from his looser, broad-brushed pastel-colored early paintings towards the tighter, still, refined, monochromatic works of his mature oeuvre, which have earned him the sobriquet of ‘The Russian Morandi’. These so-called white on white paintings are elegant explorations of form and shade which change beautifully with the light. The present work still has the distinctive patterned nails which the artist used to attach his canvases to the stretcher.

Provenance

Galerie Gorky Basmadjian, Paris

Exhibited

ParisGalerie Gorky Basmadjian, 'Weisberg', 20 June - 15 September 1984, no.22 'La Cité'

Literature

Exhibition catalogue 'Weisberg', Paris: Galerie Gorky Basmadjian, 1984, no.22 illustrated 
'Vladimir Grigorievich Weisberg. Paintings, Watercolors, Drawings'. Moscow: Gendalf, 1994, p.135, no.594 listed

Condition

Original canvas and the stretcher and nails are also original. There is a light scuff mark in a small area in the lower left corner of the central composition, with minor associated paint loss. There is a layer of light surface dirt. Otherwise in overall good condition. UV light reveals no apparent signs of retouching. Held and mounted in a simple gold-painted frame. Unexamined out of frame.
The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The condition report is provided to assist you with assessing the condition of the lot and is for guidance only. Any reference to condition in the condition report for the lot does not amount to a full description of condition. The images of the lot form part of the condition report for the lot provided by Sotheby's. Certain images of the lot provided online may not accurately reflect the actual condition of the lot. In particular, the online images may represent colours and shades which are different to the lot's actual colour and shades. The condition report for the lot may make reference to particular imperfections of the lot but you should note that the lot may have other faults not expressly referred to in the condition report for the lot or shown in the online images of the lot. The condition report may not refer to all faults, restoration, alteration or adaptation because Sotheby's is not a professional conservator or restorer but rather the condition report is a statement of opinion genuinely held by Sotheby's. For that reason, Sotheby's condition report is not an alternative to taking your own professional advice regarding the condition of the lot.