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COLLECTION OF THE LATE CHRISTIAN FISCHBACHER Christian H. Fischbacher was born in 1913, heir to a Swiss family business with a long tradition - the Fischbacher company, a business founded in 1819 in St. Gallen, Switzerland, which specialised in fabrics, dealing mainly in moussline. Christian renounced a possible career in his parents' firm and emigrated to America. In 1937, he founded his own company in New York, adopting the family business idea. His aim was to deal in fabrics and also to design and market his own collection. However with the outbreak of Second World War and the subsequent collapse of the European market, Fischbacher was forced to turn away from fabrics and focused on running his huge farm in New Jersey. After his return to New York circa 1945, he re-established his company and also founded a publishing company. In 1953, after the death of his father, Fischbacher returned to Switzerland to take over the family business. His New York experience invigorated the Fischbacher family business, resulting in the creation of a new department which designed, produced and marketed its own designs. Christian transformed the company into a highly efficient modern business and the company has followed this model right up to the present day. Fischbacher's aesthetic ideals benefited not only the family business but also the family art collection. Swiss Art of the 19th Century dominated the Fischbacher's collection and the significant group of works by Giovanni Segantini, which was donated to the Segantini Museum in St. Moritz, offers an impressive overview. As an art collector Christian Fischbacher foudn his own direction and, together with his wife, avidly pursued his tastes. One of the main areas in his collection represents the art of the 20th Century, with an emphasis on Russian Constructivism and Constructive Art. His openness and vision led him also to works by Georges Rouault, Edouard Vuillard and Paul Gauguin. A keen traveller always open to new ideas and experiences, he was introduced to Asian Art, especially that of China and Thailand. He also built up an impressive group of sculpture and a comprehensive collection of Art Nouveau vanity cases, bearing famous signatures such as Cartier, Tiffany, Boucheron and Van Cleef & Arpels. Christian Fischbacher died in January 2006. He will be remembered as a highly innovative businessman, a collector with the true eye of a connoisseur, as well as a great sportsman, a member of the Swiss Olympic team in 1984 for skeleton bob and as the Honorary Pesident of the famous Cresta Club in St. Moritz. Christie's is honoured to offer part of Christian Fischbacher's collection during our forthcoming sales. PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF THE LATE CHRISTIAN FISCHBACHER

Edouard Vuillard (1868-1940)

Jeune femme de profil avec un large chapeau noir

Details

Edouard Vuillard (1868-1940)
Jeune femme de profil avec un large chapeau noir
stamped with the signature 'E Vuillard' (Lugt 2497a; lower right)
pastel on grey paper
25¾ x 19 in. (65.5 x 48 cm.)
Executed circa 1915

Provenance

The artist's studio.
Arthur Tooth & Sons, London.
Lady Baillie, England; her sale, Sotheby's, London, 4 December 1974, lot 160.
Acquired at the above sale by Christian Fischbacher.

Literature

A. Salomon & G. Cogeval, Vuillard, The Inexhaustible Glance, Critical Catalogue of Paintings and Pastels, vol. III, Paris, 2003, no. X-43 (illustrated p. 1200).

Special notice

VAT rate of 5% is payable on hammer price and at 15% on the buyer's premium

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