?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 50,000 - $ 80,000
HENRI MATISSE Grand Masque.
Aquatint, 1948. 433x348 mm; 17x13 5/8 inches, full margins. One of only 5 known artist's proofs, aside from the edition of 25. Signed, dedicated "à Nadia Sednaoui" and inscribed "ép. d'artiste 1/5" in ink, lower right.
A gift from the artist to Nadia Sednaoui, his favorite model in the late 1940s.
Matisse (1869-1954) was introduced to Nadia Sednaoui by his son-in-law, who met her on the street and thought she would provide an engaging model for the artist. Sednaoui agreed to pose for the prolific artist, who at this point had begun preparing his designs for the Chapelle du Rosaire de Vence. The collaboration resulted in the creation of several ink drawings and a group of aquatints, such as the current lot.
Though famous for his paintings and sculptures, Matisse was also a prolific printmaker, producing over 800 individual prints (typically in small editions of 25 to 50) from 1900 to 1954. He moved freely between various printmaking techniques and used printmaking as an extension of his drawing style and process. The imagery he created often was repeated forms of reclining nudes, portraits or dancing figures drawn with elegant and energetic contour lines. For Matisse, printmaking was an exciting medium that allowed innovation while it also enabled him to produce works in multiples in order to satisfy the increasing demand for his art. The wide dissemination and demand for Matisse's printed work undoubtedly contributed immensely to his position as a preeminent artist of the 20th century.
A superb impression of this scarce print. We have found only 9 other impressions at auction in the past 30 years. Duthuit 800.
