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Lot 78

Robert Henri
(1865-1929)
Betalo, The Dancer 32 1/4 x 26 1/4in

22 November 2016, 14:00 EST
New York

US$80,000 - US$120,000

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Robert Henri (1865-1929)

Betalo, The Dancer
signed 'Robert Henri' (lower right) and signed again and inscribed 'Robert Henri / 65 / F' (on the reverse)
oil on canvas
32 1/4 x 26 1/4in
Painted in 1910.

Footnotes

Provenance
The artist.
Charles Williams, England, 1910.
Agnew's Gallery, London.
Henry Reinhardt, New York, 1919.
The artist, 1926.
Ferargil Galleries, New York.
J.C. LeClair.
The Chapellier Galleries, Inc., New York, probably acquired from the above, by 1976.
Arvest Galleries, Inc., Boston, Massachusetts.
Private collection, acquired from the above, by 1994.
with Nedra Matteucci Galleries, Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Acquired by the present owner from the above.

Exhibited
New York, The 1910 Exhibition of Independent Artists, 1910.
Dallas, Texas, State Fair of Texas, 1910.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Art Club, 1910.
New York, Macbeth Gallery, 1926.
New York, The Chapellier Galleries, Inc., Robert Henri 1865-1929, October 15-November 27, 1976, n.p., no. 35, illustrated (as Senorita Betalo).

According to Robert Henri scholar Valerie Ann Leeds, the subject of the present work is Betalo Rubino, an important model whom the artist featured in a series of portraits painted in 1909 and 1910. (V.A. Leeds, My People: The Portraits of Robert Henri, Seattle, Washington, 1994, p. 28) Each of the works from this group feature the dancer in costume, the same yellow satin gown, matching shawl and gold jewelry. The present work features the sitter in the same uniform—the sweeping brushstrokes visible in the fabric of her garments express tones of yellow and purple and a bold floral pattern liven the monotone palette. She glances out of the way of the viewer, disengaged, in a moment of reflection. The background is further decorated in splashes of yellow and gold which construct the room around her. One of the related portraits of the subject, Girl with Fan, exists in the permanent collection of the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Art. After the work was sent for an exhibition in 1912, it was acquired by the Academy, adding to the growing list of institutions which were purchasing portraits by Henri during this period. The present work was exhibited extensively in the year of its completion in 1910, traveling to exhibitions in New York, Dallas, Texas and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Additional information

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