Private Collection, France
Sale: Sotheby's, London, June 20, 2007, lot 474
Acquired at the above sale

This painting has fairly recently been restored and should be hung in its current condition. The tacking edges of the original canvas have been reinforced. There are two large patches on the reverse in the lower half of the canvas, and in the upper half there is a patch in the center and one on the right side. The painting is cleaned, varnished and retouched. The retouches are clearly visible under ultraviolet light on two spots on either side of the smaller steeple in the center of the sky and in a spot in the right of the sky. The bulk of the restorations are in the lower half of the picture. In the lower right an old tear, which runs vertically along the right side for about six inches, has been restored. Across the bottom edge from the center towards the left corner, there is a larger more significant restoration that does not appear to encompass the figure but certainly covers most of the street around the figure and the lamppost. There is presumably significant loss in this area. Again, the painting should be hung as is. The above condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's.
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.

An exceptionally adept painter, Herbin transitioned seamlessly through a series of stylistic interludes during the first decade of the twentieth century and, after embracing the tenets of Fauvism in 1906, he rapidly embarked on the most successful period of his early career. In La place Maubert à Paris ℱHerbin renders the city street as a dazzling mosaic of color, posing a distinct contrast to the relatively sober and restrained scenes of Paris that he executed in the preceding years. Though disguised by his loose brushstrokes and the intensity of his palette, the cathedral spire and rose window in the background are unmistakably those of Notre Dame, and such abstracted rendering of architecture may be assumed to prefigure his later abstract compositions.