FRANCIS PICABIA | Visage de femme

Galerie Natalie Seroussi, Paris
Private Collection (acquired from the above circa 2006)
Acquired from the above by the present owner in 2016

This work is in good condition overall. There is evidence of wear and handling to the extreme edges, most noticeably to the corners. There are four scattered losses along the upper edge. Stable drying cracks are present throughout the work, most noticeably in the lower left quadrant. There are two diagonal surface irregularities visible; one diagonally across the figure's neck and one that dissects the figure's hairline. Under Ultraviolet light inspection, the aforementioned diagonal irregularities fluoresce darkly. Framed.
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.

"Even more popular over the last few years have been his female nudes of the 1940s, with their kitschy, cheesecake imagery appropriated from soft-core porn and fashion magazines. These paintings’ twisted Neo-Classicism, their Ingresque backlighting...not to mention the physical-culture allure of their 1930s photographic sources, combined to make Picabia’s ’40s [paintings] the paradigm of a new kind of pictoriality which has proved very powerful for contemporary artists."
Brooks Adams, "Picabia, the New Paradigm" in Art in America, March 2003, p. 84

This work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné being prepared by the Comité Picabia.