a rare early masterpiece by natalia sergeevna goncharova to lead sotheby’s may sales of russian...

7/31/2019 A Rare Early Masterpiece By Natalia Sergeevna Goncharova To Lead Sothebys May Sales of Russian Art in London

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For Immediate ReleasePress Release London

London | +44 (0)20 7293 6000 | Matthew Weigman | [email protected] Warren | [email protected] | Mitzi Mina | [email protected]

Moscow | +7 9166094115 | Anna Svergun | [email protected]

A Rare Early Masterpiece By Natalia SergeevnaGoncharova To Lead Sothebys May Sales of Russian Art

in London

Natalia Sergeevna Goncharovas Still Life (Bluebells)will headlineSothebys Russian Art Sales Series Alongside:

--Museum- Quality Masterpieces by Leading Russian Artists Including Konchalovsky,Larionov and Vereshchagin--

--An Exceptionally Rare Group of Ceramics By Mikhail Vrubel--

--An Important Silver Tureen from the Petrovskii Service, The Most Important Piece ofImperial Silver to Enter The Market In Recent Years--

PLEASE

Sothebys May sales of Russian art to be held in London on 28th, 29th & 30th May will once againbring to the market a plethora of rare and important works by Russias preeminent artists andcraftsmen from the mid-18th century to the early avant garde. In particular, this Mays sales will bedistinguished by the fact that so many of the works are fresh to the market, having rarely if ever been seen in public before. Such is the story of one of this seasons star lots, Vereshchagins TheSpy, the whereabouts of which have remained unknown for over 120 years. This seasons sales willalso be distinguished by a group of exceptionally rare and important examples of the work of MikhailVrubel, one of the leading members of the Abramtsevo workshop, the all- important centre for theSlavophile movement during the 19th century.


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HIGHLIGHTS FROM SOTHEBYS LONDON EVENING SALE OFIMPORTANT RUSSIAN ART, MAY 28th

Sothebys forthcoming evening auction of Important Russian Art in London on 28th of May, willbring together museum-quality masterpieces spanning important genres in Russian art, from superb19th century landscapes to the early avant-garde - including works by Vasily Vasilevich

Vereshchagin, Natalia Sergeevna Goncharova and Petr Petrovich Konchalovsky.

Vasily Vasilevich Vereshchagin, The Spy(est. 800,000-1,250,000*)

A recently rediscovered work by one of Russias mostsought-after 19

thcentury artists, Vasily Vasilevich

Vereshchagin, will highlight the sale. A monumentalcanvas, The Spy is one of the most stirring and

dramatic images from his series of paintings on thesubject of the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-1878. TheSpywas included in the artists successful 1889 soloexhibition which toured America and was sold in theculminating auction at the American Art Associationsale in New York in 1891. It has been in a privateAmerican collection since the 1950s.

Natalia Sergeevna Goncharova, Still Life (Bluebells)(est. 34 million)

Still Life (Bluebells) is rare example of Goncharovasearly work and has been extensively published inmonographs on the artist. A fragment of her famous1909 painting, Bleaching Linen (The State Russian

Museum), is depicted in the background. Anexploration of Primitivism and Post-Impressionism, thepresent work also reflects the important influence ofHenri Matisse. This museum-quality work is among themost significant paintings by the artist ever to beoffered at auction.

Petr Petrovich Konchalovsky, Zhelty buket(est. 300,000- 500,000)

This 1918 masterpiece has not been on publicexhibition since 1925. The sophisticated palette andCubist techniques reflect the important influence ofBraque during this highly sought-after period inKonchalovskys life, and showcase the artistsapproach to still life painting at its most radical.

Alexei Petrovich Bogoliubov,Venice By Moonlight(est. 250,000-450,000)

Bogoliubovs Venetian cityscapes were exhibitionhighlights in Russia and Europe during his lifetime.This dramatic depiction of San Giorgio Maggiore bymoonlight is one of Bogoliubovs finest evening viewsof the city ever to appear at auction.


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Boris Anisfeld, Portrait of Feodor Chaliapin

(est. 300,000-400,000)

This recently rediscovered portrait of Russias greatestbass singer was painted in 1916, prior to Anisfeldsemigration. It was published in the catalogue of his famous1918 exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum and has remainedin a private American collection since the 1920s. Rarely docontemporary portraits of Chaliapin of such quality appearoutside museum collections.

FURTHER HIGHLIGHTS FROM SOTHEBYS LONDON EVENING SALE OFIMPORTANT RUSSIAN ART, MAY 28th

Mikhail Fedorovich Larionov. The Bathers(est. 300,000-500,000)

The Batherswas a gift from the artist to the Italian Futuristpoet, Carlo Belloli in 1964 and has remained in the samefamily ever since. An exceptionally rare example ofLarionov's early work, The Bathers belongs to anexperimental stage of Larionov's journey towardsRayonism. Until now, it has only been known to arthistorians from the black and white image in the 1961 ArtsCouncil of Great Britain Exhibition catalo ue.

Boris Dmitrievich Grigoriev, Boy At Harvest Time(est. 250,000-350,000)

Boy At Harvest Time is one of several portraitscommissioned by the Goldsmiths, avid collectors whomGrigoriev met in New York in 1923 after his landmarkexhibition at the Brooklyn Museum. The present workdepicts their young son, Frank, and is being offereddirectly by descendants of the sitter.


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AN EXCEPTIONALLY RARE GROUP OF FIVE CERAMICS BY MIKHAIL

VRUBEL FROM A PRIVATE EUROPEAN COLLECTION

Offered as part of Sothebys London evening sale ofImportant Russian Art on May 28th

These exceptionally rare ceramics were produced in the 1890s at theAbramtsevo workshop where Vrubel pioneered new firing techniques. Inspiredby Russian folk tales and the operas of Rimsky-Korsakov, the present groupincludes some of the most sophisticated pieces from this crucial Russian ArtNouveau movement to remain in private hands.

Mikhail Vrubel,The Tsar of The Sea

est, 180,000-250,000

Mikhail Alexandrovich Vrubel,Egyptian Girl

(est, 120,000-180,000)

Mikhail Alexandrovich Vrubel,Kupava

(est, 80,000-120,000)

Mikhail Alexandrovich Vrubel,Sadko

(est, 100,000-150,000)

Mikhail Alexandrovich Vrubel,Volkhova

(est, 100,000-150,000)


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Alexander Evgenievich Yakovlev,View Of The Port In Calvi

(est, 60,000-80,000)

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SOTHEBYS LONDON SALE OFRUSSIAN PAINTINGS ON MAY 29th

-- An important collection of paintings by Alexander Evgenievich Yakovlev to beoffered at auction for the first time --

Never before seen on the international market, this important privateFrench collection comprises eleven drawings and eleven paintings by thepioneering Russian artist Alexander Yakovlev. Acquired directly by theparents of the present owner from the artists sister and opera star,Sandra Yakovlev, many of the works in the collection depict the artistsexperiences of the legendary Croisire Jaune.

Yakovlev played a pivotal role in this landmark 20,000 mile expeditionacross Central Asia and China in the early 1930s, documenting thisuncharted territory through a series of paintings and drawings.

Highlights from the collection include Polo Game at Misgar, dramaticdepictions of the Karakoram mountains and a superb group of drawingstracing the journey from Lebanon to Peking.

A ravishing view of the port at Calvi which was last exhibited at theGalerie Renaissance in Paris in 1930 will lead this group (est. 60,000-80,000).

Further highlights from theRussian Paintings day sale includePavel Tchelitchews Blue BoyWith String painted in 1927 andBoris Sveshnikovs Tracks InThe Snow, once owned by therenowned collector, Norton Dodge.The sale comprises over 160 lotsand is expected to reach in excessof 3.9 million.

Pavel TchelitchewBlue Boy With String(est, 40,000-60,000)

Boris SveshnikovTracks In The Snow

(est, 60,000-80,000)


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HIGHLIGHTS FROM SOTHEBYS LONDON SALE OF RUSSIAN WORKS OFART, FABERG AND ICONS ON MAY 30th

An Important Silver Tureen, Cover and Stand from

the Petrovskii Service, circa 1750(est. 200,000- 300,000)

Struck with the mark of Court silversmith JohanFriedrick Kpping, the silver Tureen is exquisitelyapplied with fruit, foliage, scrolls and shells and bearsthe arms of the future Emperor Peter III, Grand DukePeter Feodorvich. Commissioned by EmpressElizabeth Petrovna for the splendid grand ducalresidence of her heir, the Grand Duke PeterFeodorvich, the silver passed through the ImperialCollections and to the State Fund before being sold inthe 1920s. This tureen is only one of six listed in the

1907 inventory of the Imperial silver service, and isone the most important piece of Imperial silver toappear on the market in recent years.

A Faberg silver-gilt and enamel Frame,workmaster Anders Nevalainen,St Petersburg, Circa 1890-1895

(est. 30,000-50,000)

This heart-shaped frame was formerly in theCollection of Princess Nadeja Bariatinsky, a Lady of

the Honour of the Bedchamber to Their ImperialMajesties the Sovereign Empresses. With theBolshevik revolution in 1917, the princess fled to herestate, Selibar, in Yalta, but later refused to leave herresidence with the rest of her family when the areawas evacuated. On December 20 1920, the elderlyPrincess, now in a wheelchair, was murdered by theBolskeviks along with her daughter and son-in-law onthe balcony of her home. The enchanting Fabergframe is being sold by her great-great-granddaughter.

A parcel-gilt silver and enamel Icon of St VasilyVeliky, Ovchinnikov, Moscow, 1872

(est. 80,000-120,000)

Representing the kneeling saint Vasily Veliky in frontof an altar with his hands raised in prayer towards theholy spirit. The saints vestments and the curtains onthe right are applied with coloured champlevenamel, the background is engraved with raysemanating from the Dove of the Holy Spirit, and theborders are decorated with chased ornaments and

two blue, white and red enamel roundels.


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*Estimates do not include buyers premium

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A Faberg jewelled gold, enamel and hardstoneBonbonnire, Workmaster Michael Perchin, StPetersburg, circa 1890 (est. 20,000-30,000)

The motif of the shell was a popular one amongFabergs workmasters. Carved of striated brownagate as a neritiform mollusc shell, the hinged lid ofblack enamel is inset with a green-enamelled goldrouble coin of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna dated1756 and bordered by rose-cut diamonds. Thebonbonnire is from the collection of the Late LadyMairi Bury, youngest daughter of the 7th Marquess ofLondonderry.

A rare and unusual silver-gilt and champlevenamel Cask, Khlebnikov, Moscow, 1879

(est. 50,000-70,000)

Realistically cast as a double barrel with a dividedinterior, this rare cask is decorated with a laterpresentation plaque modelled as a cloth overlayinscribed from a consortium of Russian civilengineers to their French colleagues and dated 1889.The ends are enameled with the drinking inscriptionThe barrel overflows with wine while the ownershead with wit, and the taps are formed of cast horseheads below dugas functioning as serving levers.

a rare early masterpiece by natalia sergeevna goncharova to lead sotheby’s may sales of russian...

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