89. Tatar Woman with Pink Sirwals (Abibé) [1933]

Sensitive and virtuosic, Tonitza's work is made up of a gallery of living beings, which the artist will retain from his immediate universe. One of the enduring presences will be the female presence, its representation and contemplation being debated throughout his work. The theme of the nude, drawn from the human sphere, proposed by the artist since 1926, will be one of the themes in which the artist will excel both graphically and pictorially. Surprised in private, at home, in Mangalia or in Balchik, the nude will offer the image of a profoundly plastic interpretation, in which he will place colour and light on the scale of his creative values. According to his own beliefs, the nude will mirror a subtle twinning of colour and light, becoming a concentrated matter of study, and in time, a leitmotif. A virtuoso drawer, who practiced in the classes of "accademie", the artist would become accustomed to depicting the human body from the first years of studies, researching the volumes, the proportions, the dynamics and plasticity, which he would later wrap in new plastic interpretations. Delightfully rendered against a bright palette, its contemplation is calm. He will not copy the nature in front of him, nor will he try to imitate it, but will recompose its forms in bright chromatic correspondences. He will play with brushstrokes in wide planes, avoiding "too apparent" anatomies, a detail that explains his predilection for the representation of torsos, in the depiction of which he will pay particular attention to tonal luminosity. The vibrant rendering of the diaphanous skin, outlined in fine detail, will frame the character in matte backgrounds, usually dominated by a single colour, as well as lavish scenes decorated in richly coloured arabesques. From the 1920s until the end of the 1930s, the space of Dobrogea enriched the universe of Tonitza with subjects inspired by the life of the Turks and Tartars, as well as the inexhaustible picturesque. In Mangalia and Balchik, the places of his summer pilgrimages, the artist will initiate the series of beautiful "Tartar girls" dressed in raw silk and sirwals, set in the grandeur of the Dobrogea landscape. One of the specific features of his creation in this period will be the individualization of his designs, also practiced in the past during his wanderings through the country. Thus, in 1933 we are introduced to "Abibe", presented in 1933 at the 6th exhibition of the "Group of Four" (5 - 31 March), at the Dalles Hall, together with other works of Mangalian inspiration such as: "Cafenea – Mangalia" ("Café – Mangalia"), "Prăvălie – Mangalia" ("Shop – Mangalia"), "Spate" ("Back") or "Studiu de nud" ("Nude Study"). (G.M.)

References

TONITZA, Nicolae, "Scrieri despre artă" ("Writings about art"), Meridiane Publishing House, Bucharest, 1964. "Tonitza", Meridiane Publishing House, Bucharest, 1965. ȘORBAN, Raoul, "Nicolae Tonitza", Meridiane Publishing House, Bucharest, 1965. ȘORBAN, Raoul, "Nicolae Tonitza", Meridiane Publishing House, 1973.

Dimensions

width 55 cm, height 65 cm, custom 65 × 55 cm

Description

oil on canvas, signed and dated upper right, with brown, "Tonitza, (19)33"

Research information

The artwork was part of the sixth Exhibition of the Group of Four. Painting-Sculpture-Drawing, Dalles Foundation Halls, March 5-31, 1933, at cat. 130, under the title "Abibé". The artwork is reproduced in the catalogue of the retrospective exhibition "N. N. Tonitza", The R.P.R. Art Museum, January-March 1964, Bucharest, at p. 137, cat. 38, under the title "Abibe".

Dating

1933

PROVENANCE

the historical collection Constantin "Puiu" Dimitrescu, the secretary of King Carol II; the historical collection of the poet Mihai Beniuc (1907- 1988).

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

For clarifications regarding the bidding procedure, hammer price costs, guarantee, payment, and collection terms for the winning lot, we recommend carefully reading/re-reading the Bidding Regulations.

For additional information regarding the lot and the auction, please contact the Art Consultants Department.