伊娃·岡薩雷斯

Private Collection (1896)
Pierre M. Bloch
Palais Galliera, Paris, March 12, 1964, Lot 49
Galerie Schmit, Paris
Hector Brame, Paris
Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon (acquired from the above in July 1964)

Marie-Caroline Sainsaulieu & Jacques de Mons, Eva Gonzalès, 1849-1888, Etude critique et catalogue raisonné, Paris, 1990, cat. no. 63, p. 155, illustrated (catalogued as oil on paper mounted to canvas)

Very good condition. Original canvas. The canvas is buckling in the lower right quadrant. Under UV, a pin-dot of florescence is visible to the lower left of the bouquet, and some minor touches where the blooms meet the white wrapping at the right. The white paint evidences craquelure throughout, with slight discoloration to the white impasto at the top-left edge, and a tiny loss along the fold of the wrapping at top left.
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.

Painted at the dawning of the Impressionist movement, Gonzalès' floral bouquet offers a refreshing and novel approach to this particular genre of still-life painting.  Still wrapped in its protective paper from the florist, the flowers appear to have been tossed on a table, where a few stray blooms are scattered along the edge.  It is as if the recipient has placed them down temporarily and in haste while searching for a vase.  Gonzales' picture here captures the sponteneity of an act and the impermanance of a moment in time, which were qualities of central importance to the Impressionist painters.

Gonzalès' use of sharp tonal contrasts are indebted to the example of her mentor Edouard Manet, and the composition itself calls to mind the wrapped bouquet featured in Manet's infamous depiction of Olympia from 1864.  Gonzalès also featured a discarded bouquet in her large canvas in Musée d'Orsay, Une Loge aux italiens,  which was painted around the same time as the present work and is presumably related to this composition.