News from The Modigliani Initiative

May 29, 2024

Spring News

Girl in a Polka Dot Blouse (detail), 1918, Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia

Modigliani is once again in the news this spring, with Modigliani: Modern Gazes now on view at the Barberini Museum in Potsdam and significant drawings offered for sale at auction. Because provenance research is of prime importance when considering Modigliani, his artwork will be one of the topics in an upcoming panel discussion. For those interested in delving further into the field of provenance research, we recommend a recent publication and also offer links to two courses that will be taught this summer.

Upcoming Program

On June 13, The Modigliani Initiative will participate in what promises to be an illuminating Salon Talk about issues with provenance, sponsored by Gallagher and AXA/XL. Because provenance research lies at the heart of our work at the Initiative, we will present a case study on how we were able to discover the ownership history of a painting not included in the most accepted catalogue raisonné of the artist's work, tracing it back to Modigliani’s lifetime. A virtual attendance option will be available for those unable to attend in person. For more information and to RSVP, send an email here.

Auction News

Femme assise (de profil), 1917, graphite pencil and crayon on paper, 17 1/4 x 10 1/2 in.

Femme assise (de profil) was sold at Bonhams Skinner in Marlborough, Massachusetts, on May 21, 2024. Once in the collection of New York attorney and art collector Cornelius J. Sullivan, the drawing was likely included in the exhibition, Paintings and Drawings by Modigliani, organized by his wife, the art dealer Mary Quinn Sullivan. This took place at the Galleries of Mrs. Cornelius J. Sullivan in January 1936 and featured eleven paintings and twenty-one drawings. Additional information on the recent sale can be accessed here.

Amazone, 1909, graphite pencil on paper, 12 3/16 x 9 1/4 in.

Coming up for sale on May 30 at Giquello, Paris, is a preparatory drawing for Modigliani’s 1909 portrait, L’Amazone, depicting Marguerite de Hasse de Villers. At the time, the Baroness, an accomplished equestrienne, was the companion of Jean Alexandre, the younger brother of Paul Alexandre, who was Modigliani’s first patron. More information on the sale can be found here.

Recent Publication

Nazi-Era Provenance of Museum Collections

A research guide by

Jacques Schuhmacher with a foreword by Edmund de Waal.

Dr. Schuhmacher is Senior Provenance Research Curator at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London. He introduces readers to the research methods and resources that can be used to reveal the moving stories behind the objects, highlighting the absorbing work of provenance researchers as it plays out in practice.

The publication can be downloaded here.

Provenance Research Courses

Center for Art Collection Ethics

The Center for Art Collection Ethics at the University of Denver will offer an intensive training program on the fundamentals of Nazi-era provenance research from June 24 to 28, 2024.

Though this is a certification course, the public is invited to attend remotely and registration is available until June 20. Here is the link.

International Foundation for Art Research (IFAR)

A six-session, online course, “Introduction to Provenance Research,” will be led by Dr. Lisa Duffy-Zeballos, Director of Art Research, International Foundation for Art Research (IFAR) and Dr. Theresa Kutasz Christensen, Independent Art Research Consultant. The program runs from July 16 to August 1, 2024. Here is the link to learn more and to register.

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Leslie Koot | Julie Martin | Julia May Boddewyn

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