MODIGLIANI AMEDEO: (1884-1920) A rare original drawing signed by Modigliani and gifted to his mistress

MODIGLIANI AMEDEO: (1884-1920) A rare original drawing signed by Modigliani and gifted to his mistress

MODIGLIANI AMEDEO: (1884-1920) Italian painter and sculptor. A fine original graphite drawing signed by Modigliani, one page, oblong folio (approximately 42.5 x 26.5 cm), n.p. (Paris), n.d (c.1913). The attractive drawing is executed on a page which appears to have been neatly removed from a sktechbook and depicts a human figure, either a woman or child, sleeping peacefully and with their head turned towards the observer. Signed (´Modigliani´) by the artist in pencil to the lower right corner and inscribed in his hand to the verso, ´A Madame Hastings´. A rare original signed drawing with an excellent association. Glazed to both sides. VG

The present drawing is an enchanting example of one of Modigliani´s sketches from his Cariatide series and illustrates the complex working process that lay behind each of the artist’s three-dimensional projects in stone. Creating countless drawings and sketches before ever taking his hammer to a block, studies such as the present example offered Modigliani a forum in which to experiment and visualise his ideas before translating them into sculptural form. In its fusion of these two strands, sculpture and drawing, the Cariatide series represents an intriguing crossover work, straddling the intersection between Modigliani’s two principal creative impulses.

From 1910 to 1913, he dedicated himself to sculpture, of which only twenty-five examples have survived. With the high cost of limestone, the material was precious and thus drawing became integral to his process, with the walls of his studio punctuated with the architectural studies of heads. Modigliani’s unreliable income also required him to move frequently from one studio to another and each time the drawings would be rehung. As a draughtsman, Modigliani focused on a narrow range of themes including idol-like heads and his intense preoccupation with sculptural form was the dominant force in his work. He became obsessed with the caryatid both as a sensual figure and as a functional architectural element.

During his early years in Paris, Modigliani worked at a furious pace. He was constantly sketching, making as many as a hundred drawings a day. However, many of his works were lost—destroyed by him as inferior, left behind in his frequent changes of address, or given to girlfriends who did not keep them.

Provenance: The present drawing was gifted by the artist to his lover Beatrice Hastings (1879-1943) English writer, literary critic, poet and theosophist. The two shared an apartment in Montparnasse and Hastings modelled for fourteen of Modigliani´s paintings including Seated Nude (1916). Hastings was also the friend and lover of both Katherine Mansfield and Wyndham Lewis.

The drawing was later sold as part of the Collection of Monsieur F. (auction at Hotel Drouot, 22nd November 1922, lot 14) and subsequently formed part of the Collection of Monsieur Coste.