93 - Alexandre IACOVLEFF (1887–1938)
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Estimate €6,000 - €8,000

Description

Alexandre IACOVLEFF (1887–1938) Self-portrait in a cap, Gaviota, 1936 Red chalk and pencil on paper. Signed, lower left; inscribed and dated, lower right: ‘To the dear President, in memory of our expedition to the land of the Meltem, Gaviota 1936’. Height: 37.2 cm Width: 27.4 cm A magnificent self-portrait of the artist, who looks straight into our eyes. Wearing a cap, his handsome face wears a faint smile. A few fine lines dot his temples, whilst his moustache and beard are beginning to turn grey. At the age of forty-nine, Alexandre Iacovleff has already seen and experienced so much! His dedication to ‘the dear President’ confirms that Ana Lopez Ross, Anita’s mother, was the model for Lot 2. All the more so as, back in 1933, he had already sent her a self-portrait (the one wearing a pith helmet, painted in 1926 upon his return from the ‘Croisière Noire’), also accompanied by a respectful and somewhat formal dedication (To Mrs A. Lopez, in memory of the marvellous trip to Greece and with my best wishes for the year 1934). We would like to thank Ms Caroline Haardt de La Baume, an expert on the work of Alexandre Iacovleff, for writing this entry. This lot will be included in the catalogue raisonné of Alexandre Iacovleff currently in preparation. Notes: This series of faces in profile, three-quarter view or full face was created by Alexandre Iacovleff in the summer of 1936, whilst on a cruise in Greece aboard the Gaviota (Spanish for ‘seagull’). Entirely panelled in wood, this luxurious yacht belonged to Arturo Lopez Perez (1873–1949), a wealthy Chilean industrialist who made his fortune from guano. These five red chalk portraits are all linked to the Lopez family, who made a name for themselves in Parisian society during the interwar period. Friends with many Russian émigrés, including Diaghilev and Stravinsky, the Lópezes became major patrons of the arts and built up significant collections of works of art and silverware. It is not known whether Alexandre Iacovleff met Arturo Lopez through Diaghilev or as a result of the exhibition ‘Drawings and Paintings from the Far East’ which he presented at the Barbazanges Gallery. Be that as it may, by the mid-1920s he had already been invited by the Lópezes to the Château de Vosves, famous for its water features, and to their magnificent townhouse in Neuilly-sur-Seine. In the charming dining room, one of the walls was adorned with a quotation from Ovid’s *Tristia*: ‘You will have many friends as long as fortune smiles upon you; but if the heavens darken, you will find yourself alone. ’ As he was such a delightful and cultured man, the artist accompanied the Lopez family on several occasions on a cruise around the Greek islands aboard the Gaviota. Having become a highly sought-after portraitist and draughtsman, he received numerous commissions from the entire Lopez family. These included several portraits of Ana Lopez-Ross, Arturo Lopez’s second wife, of their daughter Anita, and also of the son from Arturo Lopez’s first marriage to Sara Willshaw. It was Anita Lopez-Ross (1911–2002), with her strong personality, who particularly caught his attention. As she was a leader with the French Girl Guides Federation, he drew her in her Girl Guide uniform. These five red chalk drawings were not commissions but works given by the artist to their recipients as gifts. Illustration no. 6 Self-portrait in a pith helmet, 1926 (Detail) D.R. Presented by the artist in 1933/34 to Ana Lopez Ross

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About the sale PRESTIGE – 20TH-CENTURY ART & DESIGN – CHÂTEAU DE VAYRES

Auction location

Auction time 10/17/2026 at 2:00 PM

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93 - Alexandre IACOVLEFF (1887–1938) See original version (French)

93 - Alexandre IACOVLEFF (1887–1938)
See original version (French)