Roderic O'Conor (1860-1940)
Woman Reading (1904-5)
Oil on panel, 37 x 46cm (14½ x 18'')
Artist's atelier stamp verso, Merchant's stamp verso. Blanchet, 20 rue, St Benoit, Paris

Provenance:...

Roderic O'Conor (1860-1940)
Woman Reading (1904-5)
Oil on panel, 37 x 46cm (14½ x 18'')
Artist's atelier stamp verso, Merchant's stamp verso. Blanchet, 20 rue, St Benoit, Paris

Provenance: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, Vente O'Conor, 7/02/1956; Roland, Blowse and Delbanco, London (label verso); William E and Elizabeth Wallace; Christie's, London, 8th November 1990, No.103; where purchased by current owner.

Exhibited: "Roderic O'Conor" Exhibition Roland, Browse, Delbanco, London 1964 Cat. No. 8 "Roderic O'Conor : A Selection of his best works" ExhibitionRoland, Browse, Delbanco, London 1971 Cat. No. 19

Literature: Benington, Jonathan, 'Roderic O'Conor', Dublin, Irish Academic Press, 1992, Catalogue No.119.

This quietly restrained painting was among the lots sold in Paris at the 1956 Hotel Drouot auction of the contents of the joint studios of Roderic OConor and his wife, Renée Honta. The work was among those purchased by Dr. Henry Roland of Roland, Browse and Delbanco in Cork Street, London, the gallery responsible for introducing OConors work to a wider British, Irish and international audience. Many of the works which the gallery bought in Paris were untitled, and when this painting was first exhibited in London in 1964, and again in 1971, it was shown under the ascribed, or given, title ofWoman Reading.

A close analysis of the painting reveals that the woman is in fact not reading, but is in the act of dressing and is putting on a garment, probably a blouse or chemise. The positioning of her left hand, which is pulling on the garment, has created a ridge of tension which is further confirmed as such by the excess fabric hanging below her hand. The positioning of her right arm and her inclined head is a further indication that she is not reading but is clearly in the process of dressing.

OConors painting was made in his rue du Cherche Midi studio in Paris, with his model seated on a red fabric upholstered French armchair, with gilded, fluted wooden arms and back, which appears frequently in his studio paintings.

OConor moved into this Montparnasse studio when he returned to Paris in 1904 following a thirteenyear association with Brittany where he had painted at Pont-Aven, Le Pouldu and Rochefort-en-Terre as a member of Gauguins circle of artists. The change of environment from rural coastal Brittany to cosmopolitan Paris had an immediate effect on OConors subject matter. Vigorously painted landscapes and stormy seas gave way to studio still-lifes and paintings of female models. This work is indicative of an awareness of Pierre Bonnards quiet and intimate paintings at the turn of the century, and is revealing of OConors obvious admiration for his work from this period in Bonnards career. Both OConor and Bonnard were represented in the sixth, seventh, and eighth exhibitions in the important series organized by the Barc de Boutteville andshown in his gallery in rue Peletier in 1894 under the titleExposition des Peintres Impressionistes et Symbolistes.OConor, a discriminating collector, also acquired several Bonnard works for his own collection.

The 1904 date on theBlanchetstamp verso also provides useful information in dating of the painting, as Blanchet was a well established artists colour merchant, framer, and supplier of canvas and related art materials. The companys address in 1905 was 20 rue St. Benoit in Montparnasse but later that year they moved to 38 rue Bonaparte in Montparnasse. This makes it probable that the work was painted by OConor circa1904-05.

 

Dr. Roy Johnston, March 2017

 

 

 

View more View less