Rosa Bonheur: 200th Anniversary ‘Talent has no gender’ declared the Empress Eugénie in 1865 when she elevated Rosa Bonheur to the Légion d’Honneur , the first woman to receive this recognition for achievement in the arts. While there were other female artists in 19th century France, none were quite as unconventional, or as successful, as Rosa. A prodigious talent from a young age, she owed her early artistic training to her father, himself an artist, who trained all of his children to be artists regardless of their gender. Bonheur similarly lived her life on her own terms. Never marrying, she wore her hair short, smoked, cracked bawdy jokes, and lived only with female companions for most of her life: for over 40 years with her childhood friend and fellow artist Nathalie Micas and later with the American artist Anna Klumpke. She was even provided with a permission de travestissement , which legally granted her the right to wear men’s clothing, from the local police in an effort to blend in at the slaughterhouses and horse fairs she would visit to study animal anatomy and movement for her paintings. As far as Rosa was concerned, living her life in traditionally female clothing was, in her own words, ‘a total nuisance.’ A lifelong lover of animals, Bonheur was renowned in her time for her skills as an animalier . She believed that animals had souls, and her close and repeated studies of animals throughout her life enabled her to paint them with realistic presence and strength and an exacting naturalism. Eventually, she kept a small menagerie of her own, which expanded significantly in 1860 when she purchased the Château de By in Thoméry, a village on the edge of the forest of Fontainebleau, now preserved as a museum dedicated to the artist. There Bonheur was able to keep a variety of animals which served as the subjects of her paintings – among them cows, horses, sheep, boars, deer, lions, and also a stag named Jacques, who served as her model for Le Roi de la forê t (sold at Christie’s New York for a then-world record price in 2017). Following Rosa’s death, Klumpke organized a spectacular auction in Paris of the contents of the artist’s studio that lasted more than a week. Three of the works offered in this special section dedicated to the artist were sold in her studio sale. While the popularity of Rosa’s paintings waned during the mid-20th Century, in recent years there has been a renewed interest in this remarkable painter and her life. This year, 2022, marks the 200th anniversary of Rosa’s birth, and a major exhibition planned at the Musée d’Orsay, Paris and the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux (the artist’s hometown) in conjunction with the Château-musée Rosa Bonheur will hopefully allow collectors and art lovers alike the opportunity to rediscover this exceptional and unconventional female artist. Christie’s is proud to present this selection of paintings by Bonheur in her 200th year to celebrate her as well. Property from a Distinguished Collection
ROSA BONHEUR (FRENCH, 1822-1899)Cerf
Price Realised USD 27,720
Estimate
USD 12,000 - USD 18,000
Estimates do not reflect the final hammer price and do not include buyer's premium, any applicable taxes or artist's resale right. Please see the Conditions of Sale for full details.
Closed: 12 Apr 2022
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ROSA BONHEUR (FRENCH, 1822-1899)
Cerf
Price Realised USD 27,720
Closed: 12 Apr 2022
Price Realised USD 27,720
Closed: 12 Apr 2022
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Lot 38
Sale 20675
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Cerf
ROSA BONHEUR (FRENCH, 1822-1899)
Estimate: USD 12,000 - 18,000
Bid amount
Buyer's premium
Estimated total cost exclusive of customs duties/charges and tariffs