Lot 239
  • 239

MOÏSE KISLING | Portrait d'Aïcha

Estimate
30,000 - 50,000 GBP
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Description

  • Moïse Kisling
  • Portrait d'Aïcha
  • oil on canvas
  • 73 by 54cm., 28 3/4 by 21 1/4 in.
  • Painted in 1925.

Provenance

Oscar Ghez, Geneva
Sale: Chevau Legers Enchères, Versailles, 5th December 1976, lot 58
Acquired by the present owner in 1981

Exhibited

Nice, Palais de la Méditerrannée, Kisling, 1973, n.n.

Literature

Joseph Kessel & Jean Kisling, Kisling 1891-1953, Turin, 1971, vol. I, no. 59, illustrated p. 154

Condition

The canvas is not lined. Examination under UV light reveals minor scattered spots of retouching to the blue background. The canvas is gently undulating. There are fine lines of craquelure throughout the composition, some of which appear to have been consolidated. There are some pin head sized paint losses to the blue background to the right of the figure, above the figure's head, as well as, two slightly larger losses to the lower right corner, well away from the signature. This work would benefit from a clean and gentle treatment. This work is in overall fairly 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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

The subject of this portrait is Aïcha Goblet, a prolific model, dancer and actress who worked in Montparnasse in the 1920s. She paraded her talents through the café-concerts and music halls of Paris and her bold aesthetic, which included an exotic head scarf, consistently attracted singular attention. Born in Northern France to a working-class family, of which her Father was a native from Martinique and a juggler in a travelling circus, Aïcha was performing in the ring as a bareback horse rider at the age of six. At sixteen years old, she left for Paris where she lived at Villa Falguière, close to the artists Moise Kisling, Chaïm Soutine, Amedeo Modiglinai and Tsuguharu Foujita.

To be included in the Volume IV et Additifs aux Tomes I, II, et III of the Catalogue Raisonné de l’Oeuvre de Moïse Kisling currently being prepared by Jean Kisling and Marc Ottavi.