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Old Masters and 19th Century Art
|
- Sale 6380
Live
| Philadelphia
Nov 4 | 12:00 PM EST
Live
| Philadelphia
Sale 6380
| Philadelphia
| Philadelphia
Estimate$4,000 – $6,000
Lot Essay:
Agapit Stevens was a Belgian artist best known for his portraits of women, particularly Orientalist scenes of odalisques and other female figures. Stevens was a member of the L’Essor artists’ association, created in 1876, which sought to rebel against the bourgeois, extremely conservative artistic circles in Brussels at the time. The L’Essor motto was “a unique art, one life,” as the group explored the relationship between art and life in their work.
Gathering Flowers is a portrayal of a young woman carrying, presumably freshly picked, flowers in the forest. Unlike many of Stevens’ other representations of European women, she is not sitting in a luxurious home, adorned with opulent jewelry. She instead is represented in somewhat scandalous attire: the strap of her corset falls off the shoulder with which she leans toward the viewer. There is a sensual nature to the work, somewhat reminiscent of the odalisque tradition that Stevens so often explored. This is underscored by the woman’s direct gaze that seemingly invites the viewer to gather fresh flowers while in her lovely company.
Framed: 56 1/2 x 38 3/4 x 2 1/2 in.
Significant deposits of surface dirt and dust; canvas is not lined; stretcher bar marks around the image perimeter, as well as two horizontal stretcher bar marks extending through the center; network of craquelures throughout the surface, visible primarily in raking light; seven small paint losses through the upper register, with four in the background, and one each in the woman’s hair, chin, and neck; the paint loss in the woman’s hair has surrounding inpainting visible under normal light; an area of pinpoint paint losses in the lower center, within the woman’s dress; thin lines of inpainting along all edges, as well as incised lines within the paint surface, likely caused by framing while the paint was still wet; instances of white paint droplets in scattered areas, with one noticeable spot in the lower center, directly below the hat feathers; under a discolored varnish with instances of varnish droplets in scattered areas. Under UV light: selective varnish cleaning along the upper edges, as well as in the lower right corner around the signature; thin lines of inpainting along the upper and left edges; the green varnish layer prohibits seeing any further possible inpainting. Additional images available upon request.
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