Oil on paperboard

22 x 16 cm. 8 5/8 x 6 1/4 in.

Dedicated and signed in French， dated on upper right
LITERATURE
1986, Marie Laurencin, catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre peint, D. Marchesseau, Tokyo, p.246, Ill.562

PROVENANCE
Micheline Rosenberg, friend of Marie Laurencin, acquired directly from the artist in 1933
Private Collection, Europe
3 Dec 2007, Christie's Paris Autumn Auction, Lot 35
Important Private Collection, Asia

A Beauty with Pearl-like Skin and Romantic Sentiments
Petite Fille by Marie Laurencin in her prime
Marie Laurencin was born in Paris as an illegitimate daughter of a national parliamentarian. Raised by her mother alone, she grew up in an environment filled with feminine sentiments. Aiming to foster good manners and graceful behaviors in her, her mother encouraged her to explore literature and art. As a result, Laurencin showed her interests in painting and poetry since childhood, and her mother's advocacy of exquisite and graceful visual expression had a profound impact on her creation. In her subsequent artworks, painting elements from the pearls on women's hair accessories to the hair bands and shawls in different colors have revealed her delicate and sensitive observation, as well as the familiarity with the existence of women. Many renowned fashion magazines have favored her works and invited her to paint numerous magazine covers, making her the most dazzling cultural star in the eyes of noble ladies and intellectuals. In 1923, she was commissioned by the Ballets Russes to make the stage and costume design for the play, Les Biches, which was well-known throughout the city and won her the title of "the most beautiful elk of School of Paris." With simple but elegant colors, as well as the indistinct and loose contour of the figure, Laurencin has cast a hazy beauty to the end of the golden age of Paris. Guardian Hong Kong is pleased to present the work from her prime, Petite Fille, a work carrying strong characteristics of the time, a fascinating story of the artist's life.
A portrait of a Girl with Profound Meaning
In this work, Laurencin depicted a young girl with red pigments of ochre, orange and red blended with white color against the grey background, applying lead white on her face with ornamentations of red lips and eye lines. The multi-layers of the paint appear like chiffon covering the girl's body. Through the rich details, the thorough consideration of the artist is revealed. As the viewer observes, the red hair of the girl is properly tied with a silver ribbon, garnished with Baroque style pearl hair accessories； her beautiful cloth in apricot, the classic dress of French female before the 19th century, represents the characteristic of the time.
According to the research, the girl in the painting was Micheline Rosenberg, the eldest daughter of the top French impressionist art dealer of the 20th century, Paul Rosenberg. In 1913, Laurencin met Paul at the Armory Show in New York where Paul fell in love with her works at first sight and immediately purchased two of them. Later on, he signed an exclusive agency contract with Laurencin and spared no effort to promote her work, holding solo exhibitions for her successively in 1921, 1923 and 1926. Her works were also presented together with her contemporary masters, such as Georges Braque in 1929 and Matisse in 1930, showing Paul's devotion to the artist and the deep friendship between the two.
In 1933, when Laurencin composed Petite Fille, Paris was under the Great Depression, and the life of the artist was also wretched. However, under such circumstances, Rosenberg still believed in the value of her work and continued to encourage her to paint. More than the talent scout and the artist, they regarded each other as a family member. Rosenberg's eldest daughter, Micheline, grew up under Laurencin's witness. When she turned 16 years old, Laurencin painted a portrait of her as an adult gift with heart and soul. Although the size is not large, the artist's intention is fully presented– the gratitude for the long-standing help from Paul, as well as the expectations and blessings for the little girl in the painting.

Price estimate:
HKD: 350,000 - 450,000
USD: 44,600 - 57,300

Auction Result:
HKD : --