DIEGO RIVERA | Paisaje

Galería de Arte Mexicano, Mexico City
Harry H. Enders, New York (acquired from the above) 
Private Collection, Connecticut (by descent from the above and sold: Sotheby's, New York, November 15, 1994, lot 16)
Private Collection, Colombia (acquired at the above sale) 
Acquired from the above

Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes, Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes, ed., Diego Rivera: Catálogo General de Obra de Caballete, Mexico City, 1989, no. 303, illustrated p. 46

Estado de conservación: Presenta manchado en el ángulo superior izquierdo derecho, así como pequeño faltante de capa pictórica en zona media izquierda superior. Ligera craqueladura en general. Requiere limpieza. Al reverso presenta rotura de lienzo por desgaste, en algunas zonas Bajo luz UV: Presenta intervenciones (repintes) en zona que abarca una importante extensión, en las fachadas de las casas y en el camino del poblado. Firma integrada. This work is in good condition overall. An accretion is present in the upper left corner, and a small paint loss is present in the center-left quadrant. Faint craquelure is present overall. The work is lightly soiled overall. On the reverse, repairs to the canvas are present. Under ultraviolet light inspection, inpainting becomes apparent in the upper areas of the composition including the roofs of the houses and the path. The signature is undisturbed.
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.

This painting is part of the National Heritage of Mexico and cannot be permanently exported from the country. Accordingly, it is offered for sale in New York from the catalogue and will not be available in New York for inspection or delivery. The painting will be released to the purchaser in Mexico in compliance with all local requirements. Prospective buyers may contact Sotheby’s representatives in Mexico City and Monterrey for an appointment to view the work. "In June 1911 Diego returned to Paris, settled in Montparnasse and became modern, a pointillist, but around 1912 the first cubist features are perceptible in his paintings... His cubist works, at first, sought the group's approval: Diego manufactured them "in the European manner." But little by little he pierced the "style" and began to make it his own. During a voyage he made to Majorca in 1914, he slaked himself with the colours of his memory. He suddenly abandoned the cubist still life to try his hand again at landscape... Breaking with strictly cubist forms, he rediscovered color. The luminosity of the small island, flooded with sunlight and bathed by a limpid and dazzling sea under the summer light bursts into his pictures: a new phase which contrasts with the grey and misty skies of Paris."

—Juan Coronel Rivera, "Folk Art in Diego Rivera's Painting" in Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo, Fondation Pierre Gianadda, Martigny, 1998, pp. 74-75



We wish to thank Professor Luis-Martín Lozano for his kind assistance in confirming the authenticity of this lot.