KONSTANTIN KOROVIN (1861-1939) Fishing, 1913 Oil... Lot 84

KONSTANTIN KOROVIN (1861-1939) Fishing, 1913 Oil on canvas Signed and dated lower right Oil on canvas; signed and dated lower right 93 X 74 CM - 36 5/8 X 29 1/8 IN. - PROVENANCE Collection of a French industrialist posted in Russia until 1917 (offered by the artist). Then by descent. Private collection, France. - EXHIBITIONS Moscow, Union of Russian Artists, 1913-1914, p.12, n°186 (not reproduced). Malmö, Malmö Konstmuseum, Baltic Exhibition, May 15 to October 4, 1914 (presented under the title 'Au moulin') p.229, n° 3199 (not reproduced). - RELATED WORK Konstantin Korovin (1861-1939) The Boat, 1913. Oil on canvas, signed and dated lower right, 73.5 x 93 cm. Presented for sale in 2009 by Sotheby's London. - Born into a merchant family in Moscow, Konstantin Korovin showed an early interest in art. At the age of 14, he enrolled in the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, where he studied under the famous landscape artists Aleksei Savrasov and Vasili Polenov, who would influence his work. In the 1880s, Korovin made a series of trips to Russia and abroad, and it is not surprising that he fell under the spell of Paris and Impressionism. Considered as the pioneer of Russian impressionism, his works are marked by a sensitivity of his own. The painter was able to highlight his talents in paintings representing severe and dark landscapes such as those of Norway or northern Russia, as well as in compositions with bright and warm colors reflecting the light of the Crimea. - Our painting is a rare and early work that stands out from the usual scenes of Parisian nightlife. The virtuosity of his brushwork in emerald greens and lapis blues can be seen in the first period of the painter's artistic career. Korovin treats the composition as an embroidery woven of light and color, evoking his native country with its scattered birch trees. - Fishing was shown at the famous Baltic Exhibition in Malmö, Sweden in 1914, the year after it was created. The work belonged to a French industrialist who was stationed in Russia at the beginning of the century and was a great friend of Konstantin Korovin, and the painting was given to him before he left Russia in 1917. Cherished in the same French collection for several generations, Tajan has the honor of bringing to light this masterpiece by the founder of Russian Impressionism.