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Lot Essay
In stark contrast to the severity of the sombre landscapes, resulting from Konstantin Korovin's expeditions to Norway and Russia's bleak North at the turn of the century, A lady in white seated in a garden is a celebration of colour and light that characterizes Korovin's mature oeuvre. By 1915, when this work was painted, Korovin had rejected his more monochromatic palette in favour of a bolder spectrum, which he felt expressed 'nature's very breath' (the artist quoted in A. Kamensky, Konstantin Korovin, Leningrad, 1988, p. 4).
Although it is not known where A lady in white seated in a garden was painted, the composition has much in common with Korovin's works from Gurzuf, where Korovin spent his summers from 1910-1917. Warmed by the strength of the Crimean sun and relaxed in the company of friends and acquaintances such as Ilya Repin, Vasily Surikov and Maxim Gorky, Korovin painted many of his most vibrant works, including In the garden. Gurzuf (fig. 1), painted one year before the present lot. In the 1914 work, one notices the pools of shadow and light; their juxtaposition effectively blurs the distinction between the figures and the background so that the overall impression is one of tonal unity and air.
Korovin experimented further with the interplay of colour and light in A lady in white seated in a garden. The central figure dressed in white illuminates the composition and animates the apple green hues of the surrounding trees and grass. The effect is further intensified by the white of the tablecloth and Korovin's skillful use of contrasting textures in the leaves of the trees. These abbreviated brushstrokes can also be seen in Korovin's work of 1916, A Terrace (fig. 2) in which Korovin used similar compositional elements to create the brilliance of natural sunlight.
Never before seen at auction, the resplendent and dynamic A lady in white seated in a garden is testament to the virtuosity of Konstantin Korovin, considered by many to be the founder of Russian Impressionism.
For further information on the artist and Semen Belits, please see lot 37.
Although it is not known where A lady in white seated in a garden was painted, the composition has much in common with Korovin's works from Gurzuf, where Korovin spent his summers from 1910-1917. Warmed by the strength of the Crimean sun and relaxed in the company of friends and acquaintances such as Ilya Repin, Vasily Surikov and Maxim Gorky, Korovin painted many of his most vibrant works, including In the garden. Gurzuf (fig. 1), painted one year before the present lot. In the 1914 work, one notices the pools of shadow and light; their juxtaposition effectively blurs the distinction between the figures and the background so that the overall impression is one of tonal unity and air.
Korovin experimented further with the interplay of colour and light in A lady in white seated in a garden. The central figure dressed in white illuminates the composition and animates the apple green hues of the surrounding trees and grass. The effect is further intensified by the white of the tablecloth and Korovin's skillful use of contrasting textures in the leaves of the trees. These abbreviated brushstrokes can also be seen in Korovin's work of 1916, A Terrace (fig. 2) in which Korovin used similar compositional elements to create the brilliance of natural sunlight.
Never before seen at auction, the resplendent and dynamic A lady in white seated in a garden is testament to the virtuosity of Konstantin Korovin, considered by many to be the founder of Russian Impressionism.
For further information on the artist and Semen Belits, please see lot 37.