Pencil and watercolour on paper mounted on canvas

55.8 × 46.8 cm. 22 × 18 3/8 in.

Signed in Japanese and French on bottom left

LITERATURE
1987, Léonard-Tsuguharu Foujita Vol.1, Sylvie & Dominique Buisson, ACR Edition, Paris, p.368, pl.24.07
PROVENANCE
Galerie Paul Pétridès, Paris
1 Oct 2018, Sotheby's Hong Kong Autumn Auction, Lot 770
Acquired directly by present Asian collector from the above

Note： A label of Galerie Paul Pétridès, Paris is affixed to the stretcher on the reverse

The Breeze Blows the Railing, She Smiles in the Spring
The Elegance on Foujita's Paper Works

In 1913, on the eve of the outbreak of World War I, Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita arrived in Paris. The avant-garde art did not desert during the great war and continued to sprout in the postwar society. Foujita stood with Amedeo Modigliani, Chaïm Soutine, and others, becoming the most important and the only Japanese artist with great success in the School of Paris, leading the development of art history in the first half of the twentieth century. In 1930, he left Paris and went to North and South America and Asia to explore the New World. During the journey, he portraits the local people, observing the exotic customs. In this auction, we present Le Repos du Modèle (Lot 69) completed during his golden age in Paris in 1924 and the later work Portrait de Femme (Lot 70) completed in his tour of South America in 1932, to show his unique style.

The Skin as White as Snow, the Shape as Elegant as Jade

In Portrait de Femme, he applies the delicate techniques of oriental painting to show the noble look of a Western woman. With the translucent watercolor as the ivory base, he creates a ceramic-like smooth and shiny milky white skin for the lady. The lady has a smooth and delicate forehead, neck, and hand skin, vivid and touching. Artist combines the slender and winding fine lines to outline the protagonist and the “halo” technique in the Ukiyo-e painting to create the soft light gray shadows on the skin, which fills in an oriental tenderness. The soft and moisturizing texture of her ice-white skin corresponds with the delicate and elegant folds and plain patterns on the silk cloth, driving the viewer's dual associations of vision and touch.

The Fragrance of the Lady, the Back View in the Dream

The artist portrays the upper half of the woman's body, showing her side face. Her delicate curly hair closely lies on the head and willow eyebrows echo her crimson lips. The pearl earrings also highlight elegant makeup and personal style. Meanwhile, the gem ring on her ring finger reveals an extraordinary identity. Her eyes are elegant and clear, staring at the viewer. She observes the viewer and keeps a subtle distance from the latter, stimulating people's admiration and appreciation. The artist deliberately uses charcoal to outlines the figure and blends the colors, so that the static protagonist can show the dynamic surrounding, “Beauty passes by and leaves a fragrance back view.” She smiles in the xanadu created by the artist, demonstrating her beautiful shape and elegant posture.

Amorous Face, Elegant Pose

Foujita is known for painting nude female bodies, which is proved in by the Le Repos du Modèle completed in 1924. In this painting, the protagonist's long and soft curly hair naturally drapes over her shoulders. The artist deliberately embellishes her hair with gray and blue watercolors to add luster, which also extends to the woman's eye sockets, echoing the brightness of her eyes. Her slightly closed lips are painted with orange lip glaze, shining a delicate luster. She puts one hand on the back of the chair and rests her chin on the other one, with arms tight full of beautiful lines in the color of the artist's signature charcoal.

The Love of Muses

When Foujita gained fame in Paris in the early 1920s, he met model Lucie Badoul in 1921. She became Foujita's most well-known Muses of inspiration. Her snow-white skin won the “Youki” name from Foujita, which means “rosy snow ”in Japanese. 1924 was a year that witnessed the marriage of the couple and the creation of Le Repos du Modèle, a faithful record of the passionate love between the newlyweds. In Le Repos du Modèle, Youki blinks in big yet gentle eyes, showing her shiny hair, and a youthful body, which are all the love poems written by Foujita, indicating the unique meaning of this work to the artist.

The Beauty of the Mysterious, the Road to the Innovation

Japanese aesthetics interprets “mysterious” as “deep elegance and delicate” in the national dictionary. Foujita constantly absorbs tradition and innovation, opening a path that no one has traveled before. The protagonist leaves the viewer with ultimate imagination of the coexistence of elegance and slenderness, and finally achieves the beauty of profundity that transcends time and space.

Price estimate:
HKD: 260,000 - 360,000
USD: 33,400 - 46,200

Auction Result:
HKD: 480,000