Lot 167
Valetta Swann (British-Mexican expatriate, 1904-1973). Mexican Landscape, watercolor on paper, ca. 1950. Signed "Valetta" at the lower right. A gorgeous watercolor of a scene inspired by the Mexican landscape by ex-patriate Valetta Swann, who in addition to being an accomplished artist was also the wife of famous anthropologist Bronislaw Malinowski with whom she collaborated on drawings and photographs of the indigenous cultures of Mexico. Note the striking maguey cactus plants in the foreground, the desert sands stretching beyond, and the majestic mountainsides with their alternating peaks that seem to pierce the blue skies as cumulus clouds blanket the scene from above. Size of painting: 7.9" W x 4.6" H (20.1 cm x 11.7 cm); size of frame: 14.75" W x 12" H (37.5 cm x 30.5 cm)
When her husband, Bronislaw Malinowski, passed away in 1942, Valetta elected to live in Mexico City and pursue her art career. She had her first solo art exhibition at the Palacio de Bellas Artes in 1945. Valetta went on to have over 50 solo exhibitions in Mexico, the United States, and Europe. She was also honored with a membership in Mexico's Salon de la Plastica Mexicana.
About the work in her first exhibit in Mexico Diego Rivera wrote, "The use of divided color that she brings about with insight and sensitivity is one of the qualities in her work that she should strive to retain." In 1950 Dr. Atl wrote, "This artist is essentially a luminist, because she paints with light, not in the manner of the Pointillists or the Futurists, but rather according to her own understanding, by creating genuine vibratory sensations in the spectator." (Guillermo Tovar de Teresa (1996). Repertory of Artists in Mexico: Plastic and Decorative Arts. III. Mexico City: Grupo Financiero Bancomer. p. 310.)
Provenance: ex-private Moore collection, Denver, Colorado, USA, acquired prior to 1990
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#154680
- Condition: Slight crease marks, but otherwise watercolor is in excellent condition. Jagged edges around periphery likely intentional. Signed "Valetta" at the lower right. Set in custom framing. Some loss to gallery paper on the back of the frame.
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