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Lot Essay
Wanda de Guébriant has confirmed the authenticity of this drawing, which is listed as no. G295 in the artist's archives.
See note to lot 132.
In the charcoal version (C1) in this series the model is surrounded and overwhelmed by flowers, and in the sequence of variations the flowers are accorded less prominence as the sitter dominates the composition. In his study of the Thèmes et variations, Jack Flam writes:
Through the set of C Variations, the physical touch of the pen is as carefully modulated as a violinist's work with his bow. The breathtaking virtuosity of this set ends with a kind of crescendo in C8, where the simplified composition is played against the astonishingly varied inflections of the pen marks. Appropriately enough, the heightened emotional pitch evoked by the manner of rendering is paralleled by the heightened vivacity of the model: her posture, her facial expression, and the unexpected way that she runs her fingers through her hair produce an extremely sensual and confrontational effect. (J. Flam, "Matisse's Dessins Thèmes et variations: A Book and a Method," exh. cat., Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart op. cit., p. 122)
See note to lot 132.
In the charcoal version (C1) in this series the model is surrounded and overwhelmed by flowers, and in the sequence of variations the flowers are accorded less prominence as the sitter dominates the composition. In his study of the Thèmes et variations, Jack Flam writes:
Through the set of C Variations, the physical touch of the pen is as carefully modulated as a violinist's work with his bow. The breathtaking virtuosity of this set ends with a kind of crescendo in C8, where the simplified composition is played against the astonishingly varied inflections of the pen marks. Appropriately enough, the heightened emotional pitch evoked by the manner of rendering is paralleled by the heightened vivacity of the model: her posture, her facial expression, and the unexpected way that she runs her fingers through her hair produce an extremely sensual and confrontational effect. (J. Flam, "Matisse's Dessins Thèmes et variations: A Book and a Method," exh. cat., Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart op. cit., p. 122)