Staesslé, Geneva, 1980s;
Private collection, Lucerne.

Geneva, Musée d'Art et d'Histiore, Exposition d'Oeuvres du peintre genevois Jacques-Laurent Agasse, February - March 1930, no. 50.

The following 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. This work has not been recently cleaned. The canvas has a lining which is not particularly effective, and the surface is noticeably wavy as a result of the lining and the poor stretcher. The lining may have been applied because of two vertical lines of paint losses on the right side, which presumably were caused by water damage. There are rather heavy handed restorations addressing these losses. The losses do not interrupt the signature. The signature has been cleaned, and seems to be stable and period. Elsewhere, the work is not clean and is covered in a very thick yellowed varnish. If and when the painting is cleaned, the palette would brighten considerably. There is some thinness in the black markings of both dogs which may have been retouched. There may be a few other retouches around the edges and in isolated spots, but the condition is good in general. The improvements would be notable if the lining were re-examined and the paint layer cleaned and properly retouched.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

We are grateful to Renée Loche who has confirmed the attribution of this painting based on firsthand inspection.  She dates it to circa 1804-10.

Agasse moved from Geneva to London in 1800 with the plan to establish himself as a sporting painter, primarily of thoroughbred horses and dogs. He was introduced to the wealthy sporting set through his friend and patron the Hon. George Pitt, the future 2^nd Lord Rivers, who he had met in Geneva around 1790.  Agasse had a particular fondness for dogs and some of his finest works are canine “portraits” such as his 1805 depiction of Lord River’s greyhounds Rolla and Portia (Musee d’Art et d’Histoire, Geneva),🐷 painted during the same period as the present work.