Lot 17 Roderic O'Conor

Roderic O'Conor 1860-1940 NUDE SEATED ON A CHAISE LONGUE Oil on board, 24'' x 19 3/4'' (61 x 50 cm), Atelier 'O'CONOR' stamp verso. Provenance: Private Collection, London Roderic O'Conor fascination with the female nude began in earnest after he left Brittany for good in 1904 and moved to Paris. The spacious studio he rented at 102 rue du Cherche-midi in Montparnassse became the setting for countless explorations of this time-honoured subject. The present example, with sumptuous,reds, pink, oranges and yellows recreates something of the effect of a boudoir, the model being captured as if she is just about to rise from n her couch in order to get dressed. The sense of immediacy is reinforced by the cropping of the figure's feet and hair from the top and bottom edges of this picture, with the result that her position in space is very close to the plane of the picture. The intimate setting and unselfconscious pose of this nude relate it closely to other interiors dating from O'Conors intimiste period, 1905-11. Inspiration for this body of work was provided by the late nudes of Renoir (compare for example the latter's Bather Sitting on a Rock (Baigneuse) of 1892; private collection, Paris), as well as Pierre Bonnards radiant and seemingly unposed depictions of his wife. O'Cono sought, like Bonnard, to create unpretentious pictures of women in intimate settings, engaged in everyday activities such as reading, resting, arranging their hair or fastening a stocking. An early example of 1905 entitled Repos, showing a clothed model asleep, was bought from O'Conor by the famous Russsian collector of modern European art, Ivan Morosov, and is now in the State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg. The features of the young woman seen here can be found in a number of O'Conor's paintings from this period. He would normally start work by making rapid drawings of the model in a range of different poses - an approach that allowed him to establish an understanding of her movements and proportions. I Nude seated on a chaise longue the model has been placed left of centre, seated on the edge od a divan (a favourite studio prop), with three Chinese vases located in the background to lend an air of cultured refinement. The model's expression, as so often in O'Conor's work, is contemplative and introspective, rather than overtly glamorous or sensual. The figure is lit by daylight entering the picture from the right, throwing the left side of her figure in shadow and thereby enhancing the illusion of rouned, three dimensional forms. By paving careful attention to the overall balance of the light and shade, O'Conor demonstrates his awareness of traditinal themes and approaches, simultaneously in this painting was one of his favourite colours, inevitably calling Renoir to mind once again. whereas the seated nude on the front of this picture is a highley considered statement that must have demanded frequent sittings of the model over a prolonged period, reclining nude on the reverse is a spontaneous and vibrant sketch, painted in one sitting. The two contrasting treatments show how the extent to which O'Conor was prepare to adapt his approach, working rapidly alla prima in order to d=seize a pose or light effect before it was lost foe ever, while at the the same time producing pictures with a much higher degree of 'finish', perhaps with a exhibition in mind. Even in more developed works, however, the artist still liked to retain a degree of spontaneity: compare foe example the bold patch of creamy paint on the seated nude's left shoulder, with the incredibly delicate, feathered brushstrokes used in her right cheek and neck. We are greatful to Jonathan Benington for kindly preparing this catalogue entry.