Lot 222
  • 222

KEES VAN DONGEN | Alicia Alanova (Jeune fille aux pieds nus)

Estimate
120,000 - 180,000 USD
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Description

  • Kees van Dongen
  • Alicia Alanova (Jeune fille aux pieds nus)
  • Signed Van Dongen. (lower left); signed van Dongen., numbered 30 and inscribed 75. Rue de Courcelles Paris (on the reverse) 
  • Oil on canvas
  • 64 by 51 1/4 in.
  • 162.5 by 130.7 cm
  • Painted circa 1931.

Provenance

Collection of the artist, Monte Carlo (by 1959)
Galerie Taménaga, Paris & Tokyo
Acquired from the above circa 1980s

Exhibited

Paris, 5, rue Juliette-Lamber, 30 ans de peinture, Exposition Van Dongen, 1931, no. 62 (possibly; titled Alanova)
Pittsburgh, Carnegie Institute, Thirtieth International Exhibition of Paintings, 1931, no. 185 (possibly; titled Miss Alanova)
Paris, Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Salon, 1932, no. 1972 (titled Mlle Alanova)
Amsterdam, Frans Buffa & Zonen, Exposeeren nieuwe werken door Kees van Dongen, 1935, no. 3 
Paris, Galerie des Champs-Elysées, Société du Salon d'automne. Catalogue des ouvrages de Peinture, sculpture, dessin, gravure, architecture et art décoratif exposés au Grand Palais des Champs-Elysées du 1er novembre au 8 décembre 1935, 1935, no. 1481 
Paris, Galerie Charpentier, La Femme et les peintres et les sculpteurs contemporains, 1941-42, no. 34 
Paris, Galerie Charpentier, Van Dongen, 1942, no. 107 (titled Femme assise)
Musée de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, Van Dongen, 1943-44, no. 39, illustrated in the catalogue
Paris, Galerie Charpentier, Van Dongen, Oeuvres de 1890 à 1948, 1949, no. 136, illustrated in the catalogue
Geneva, Musée Rath, Van Dongen, 1959, no. 69 (dated 1925)
Nice, Musée des Beaux-Arts Jules Chéret, Hommage à Kees Van Dongen, 1977, no. 14
Toyko, Galerie de Isetan, Van Dongen, 1978, no. 38

Literature

"Kees van Dongen," in Algemeen Handelsblad, no. 35225, Amsterdam, March 1935, illustrated p. 4
H.v.C., "Kunst in de hoofdstad, Schilderkunst, Tentoonstelling van werken door Kees van Dongen in den Kunsthandel-Buffa te Amsterdam," in Gooi- en Eemlander, no. 55, Amsterdam, March 1935, illustrated p. 5
Édouard Sarradin, "Le Salon d'automn," Journal des débats politiques et littéraires, no. 302, October 31, 1935, mentioned p. 3 
Philippe Diole, "Le Salon d'Automne," Beaux-arts, Chronique des arts et de la curiosité, no. 148, November 1935, illustrated p. 1 
Pierre du Colombier, "Les Expositions, Van Dongen," in Les Beaux-Arts Le Journal des Arts, no. 84, November 1942, illustrated p. 8

Condition

The canvas has not been lined. Undulation present throughout the canvas. There is some pigment shrinkage and cracqulure in the thicker pigments of the sitter's white dress. Some additional paint shrinkage to the black pigment in the background. There are minor scattered spots of frame abrasion and associate losses to the left, bottom, and right edges. The canvas is a bit dirty overall and would benefit from cleaning. Under UV light: strokes of inpainting along all four edges to address the aforementioned frame abrasion. Two areas of inpainting 1/2 inch in diameter as well as a single pindot area of inpainting along the bottom edge. This work is in overall good condition.
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.

Catalogue Note

Alicia Alanova is an outstanding example of van Dongen’s fashionable portraits and epitomizes all that was chic and desirable during the 1920s. The present work depicts the glamorous Russian-American ballet dancer and actress Alicia Alanova (1902-1965). Known as the principle portraitist among the Fauve artists, van Dongen executed portraits inspired by his visits to the cabarets and cafés where dancers performed in exotic costumes, as well as those of members of the high society. Writing about this period of van Dongen's career, Denys Sutton comments: "During the 1920s, Van Dongen became one of the most talked of figures in the French art world and it is only necessary to run through the volume of press cuttings belonging to [his daughter] to be aware of the fact that his name was news. He was a frequent visitor to Deauville, where the smart world gathered, and to the cabarets and restaurants of Paris. What appealed to him about the années folles were their movement and gaiety. He once said: 'I passionately love the life of my time so animated, so feverish! Ah! Life is even more beautiful than painting'" (Cornelius Theodorus Marie Van Dongen (exhibition catalogue), Tucson, 1971, p. 46).



This work will be included in the forthcoming van Dongen Digital Catalogue Raisonné, currently being prepared under the sponsorship of the Wildenstein Plattner Institute, Inc.