BAKST, Leon (1866-1924), Russian, Set Design 1912

Artist: Leon Bakst, (1866-1924), Russian

Title: Shepherd and Shepherdess with flock²

Production: Parting of Daphnis and Chloe, Act 3 (III)

Date: 1912 (Acquired in 1954¹)

Medium: Original Set Design

Materials: Water Color on Beige Pager

Markings: Signed. Lower Right Corner

Dimensions: 31-½" x 51"

Framed: Yes, item has remained in the original frame when acquired by Mr. Prince and Mr. Hemphill, Jr.

Provenance: Neal Adair Prince Trust u/a/d 10.18.1999

Mr. Neal Prince

Mr. Neal Prince and Mr. Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr.

LA Vielle Russie Gallery, 781 Fifth Avenue, New York

Footnote¹: Provenance is fully noted within Hebert Waide Hemphill, Jr. (a/k/a Burt) insurance policy executed by Neal A. Prince in 1964 and is filed with the Smithsonian Institute American Archives.

Footnote²: "Notes on the Daphnis et Chloe Ballet: The lovers' sings among the sheep, the pirates' brutal interruption, the least terrifying of storms succeeded by the most perfectly curved rainbows; dainty dresses which might have been designed by Ovid, and rags corroded by sea-iodine. Monsieur Bakst has shown us a fearsome glimpse between two mossy glades and the rugged creek where the pirate’s chain up poor Chloe while they indulge in their rough horse-play and nothing could provide a more delightful contrast to their gruesome gambols than Daphnis' dance, tinkling and twinkling dew, or the ever-breaking garland of the most Latin of farandoles. Do the pirates really exist, or are they the creations of a nightmare? - And those metallic goddesses? And the great god Pan? May not the whole thing more likely be a figment of Daphnis' dreaming fancy?...."Daphnis et Chloe" ends with an awakening which suggests exactly the requisite degree of dazzled disillusion." Page 45-6, Publication: "THE DECORATIVE ART OF LEON BAKST, Appreciation by Arsene Alexandre, Notes of the Ballet by Jean Cocteau, c. 1913, reissued 1970, Benjamin Blom, Inc., New York, N.Y. 10025.

Published: Published in the Book: THE DECORATIVE ART OF LEON BAKST, by Arsene Alexandre, © 1913, reprint © 1971, Benjamin Blom Publishers, New York, New York; plate 57. Dimensions: (31-½” x 51”), copy on file within the Trust.

Institution Holdings: Art Institute of Chicago
Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco

Museum of Fine Arts,
National Gallery of Australia
Harvard University Art Museums
Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers University

National Gallery of Armenia

Leon Bakst (1866-1924), Russian

Leon Bakst was born in St. Petersburg. Bakst is a sensational stage and costume designer for Sergei Diaghilev's "Ballets Russes" Leon Bakst was one of the most sensational designers of the century – grandiose, sensual, overwhelming, and a crucial influence on Art Deco as well as the Diaghilev ballet. His designs are a mingling of very elegant and refined styles, themes and techniques, influenced by Greek vase painters and miniaturists. The use of vivid color is what Bakst is best remembered for in his designs. He died in Paris in 1924.