Property from the Private Collection of Pat and Michael York

Pavel Tchelitchew

Costume Design for the Tsar in Le Coq d'Or

VAT reduced rate

Auction Closed

December 1, 03:47 PM GMT

Estimate

12,000 - 18,000 GBP

Lot Details

Description

Property from the Private Collection of Pat and Michael York

Pavel Tchelitchew

1898 - 1957

Costume Design for the Tsar in Le Coq d'Or

stamped with the artist's signature on the reverse

gouache, gold paint and pencil on card

Sheet: 32.5 by 25cm, 12¾ by 9¼in.

Framed: 53 by 44cm, 21 by 17½in.

The sheet has discoloured in line with age. The bottom and right edges are deckled. There are pinholes in all four corners and in places along the left edge. Minor horizontal tears can be seen to the left and right edges. There is some minor creasing to the top corners, along the middle of the top edge and along the bottom edge. Surface scratches and abrasions with associated paint loss are visible throughout the Tsar's figure, most notably to the pink areas. The gold paint has degraded and discoloured. There is a layer of surface dirt with mount staining and handling marks along the edges and the odd spot of incipient foxing in places. The sheet has been adhered to the mount along all four edges, there are a few pencil sketches on the reverse. Held behind plexiglass and framed.

Condition 9 of the Conditions of Business for Buyers (Studio Sale) is not applicable to this lot.

"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."

Estate of the artist

Richard Nathanson, London

Acquired from the above by the present owners in 1977

Exhibition catalogue Pavel Tchelitchew 1898-1957: A Collection of Fifty-four Theatre Designs c.1919-1923, London, 1976, no.41, p.28 illustrated b/w

London, The Alpine Club, Pavel Tchelitchew 1898-1957: A Collection of Fifty-four Theatre Designs c.1919-1923, 13-22 December 1976, no.41

Tchelitchew produced the designs for Rimsky-Korsakov's Le Coq d'Or for the 1923 season at the Berlin State Opera. In the twenty-four-year-old artist's hands the satire of the carousing Tsar who forgets his kingdom became a bright, bawdy comedy with larger-than-life characters of exaggerated forms. In his article 'The Stage and Ballet Designs of Pavel Tchelitchev' the American novelist and friend of the artist Donald Windham aptly describes this red-nosed Tsar as 'a burlesque of over-indulgence'.