Private Collection, Paris (acquired in 1946)
Private Collection, Geneva

Valencia, Instituto Valenciano de Arte Moderno, Matisse, 2004, no. P242
Paris, musée du Luxembourg; Humlebaek (Denmark), Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Matisse, une seconde vie, 2005, no. 39

Isabelle Monod-Fontaine, Henri Matisse, Paris, 1989, illustrated p. 259
Lydia Delectorskaya, Henri Matisse, Contre vents et marées, peinture et livres illustrés de 1939 à 1943, Paris, 1996, illustrated p. 220

This work is in very good condition. The work is hinged to the mat at all four corners, but is not laid down. There are artist pinholes in all corners and a handful of faint, tiny fox marks. The Arches watermark is visible at upper right. There is a very faint mat stain and the work has deckled edges. The sheet has a warmer tone overall than the catalogue and the crayon is a richer black.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Fig. 1, Henri Matisse, Nature Morte à la dormeuse, 1940, oil on canvas, Collection Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, National Gallery of Art, Washington

Portrait de Femme is a beautifully sensuous example of the exceptional drawings Matisse produced between 1941 and 1942 whilst in the south of France. Confined to his bed for many of his waking hours following two operations, drawing had, for obvious reasons, become increasingly paramount to Matisse as a means of expression. He spent the early 1940s almost exclusively on the creation of a vast series of charcoal, ink and pencil drawings from which he hand-selected a number of images to be published in 1943 in a luxurious portfolio entitled Dessins: Thèmes et Variations, with a preface by Louis Aragon.

A quickly executed, pure line drawing, the Portrait de Femme invites us to instinctively trace the sure, rhythmic notions made by Matisse's hand. Certainly, the line that traces the outline which stems from the bottom of the model's nose and flows all the way along her ☂hairline and around again testifies to Matisse's unfaltering touch. The clean and sinuous black pencil lines travel across the crisp, blank page intuitively and without interruption, according the same weig🔯ht of importance to the delicate leaves on the left of the composition as they do the model's figure.

Portrait de Femme displays Matisse's singular ability to capture his model in a 🔴natural, casual pose, while at the same time depicting her with a great sense of elegance and grace. It is a strikingly intimate scene; we observe the model who is relaxed, reclining on her side with her head in hand and seemingly unaware of our gaze as her own attention is caught by something to the right of the work. Even Matisse, ordinarily so dissatisfied, was impressed by the quality and quantity of this sequence of themes and variations that gained in mystery and intensity as it unfolded.