Switzerland - Prints and Multiples

Marc Chagall - Original Lithograph The Red Rider From the unsigned, unnumbered lithograph printed in the literary review XXe Siecle 1957 See Mourlot 191 Dimensions: 32 x 24 cm Publisher: G. di San Lazzaro. Marc Chagall (born in 1887) Marc Chagall was born in Belarus in 1887 and developed an early interest in art. After studying painting, in 1907 he left Russia for Paris, where he lived in an artist colony on the city’s outskirts. Fusing his own personal, dreamlike imagery with hints of the fauvism and cubism popular in France at the time, Chagall created his most lasting work—including I and the Village (1911)—some of which would be featured in the Salon des Indépendants exhibitions. After returning to Vitebsk for a visit in 1914, the outbreak of WWI trapped Chagall in Russia. He returned to France in 1923 but was forced to flee the country and Nazi persecution during WWII. Finding asylum in the U.S., Chagall became involved in set and costume design before returning to France in 1948. In his later years, he experimented with new art forms and was commissioned to produce numerous large-scale works. Chagall died in St.-Paul-de-Vence in 1985. The Village Marc Chagall was born in a small Hassidic community on the outskirts of Vitebsk, Belarus, on July 7, 1887. His father was a fishmonger, and his mother ran a small sundries shop in the village. As a child, Chagall attended the Jewish elementary school, where he studied Hebrew and the Bible, before later attending the Russian public school. He began to learn the fundamentals of drawing during this time, but perhaps more importantly, he absorbed the world around him, storing away the imagery and themes that would feature largely in most of his later work. At age 19 Chagall enrolled at a private, all-Jewish art school and began his formal education in painting, studying briefly with portrait artist Yehuda Pen. However, he left the school after several months, moving to St. Petersburg in 1907 to study at the Imperial Society for the Protection of Fine Arts. The following year, he enrolled at the Svanseva School, studying with set designer Léon Bakst, whose work had been featured in Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes. This early experience would prove important to Chagall’s later career as well. Despite this formal instruction, and the widespread popularity of realism in Russia at the time, Chagall was already establishing his own personal style, which featured a more dreamlike unreality and the people, places and imagery that were close to his heart. Some examples from this period are his Window Vitebsk (1908) and My Fianceé with Black Gloves (1909), which pictured Bella Rosenfeld, to whom he had recently become engaged. The Beehive Despite his romance with Bella, in 1911 an allowance from Russian parliament member and art patron Maxim Binaver enabled Chagall to move to Paris, France. After settling briefly in the Montparnasse neighborhood, Chagall moved further afield to an artist colony known as La Ruche (“The Beehive”), where he began to work side by side with abstract painters such as Amedeo Modigliani and Fernand Léger as well as the avant-garde poet Guillaume Apollinaire. At their urging, and under the influence of the wildly popular fauvism and cubism, Chagall lightened his palette and pushed his style ever further from reality. I and the Village (1911) and Homage to Apollinaire (1912) are among his early Parisian works, widely considered to be his most successful and representative period. Though his work stood stylistically apart from his cubist contemporaries, from 1912 to 1914 Chagall exhibited several paintings at the annual Salon des Indépendants exhibition, where works by the likes of Juan Gris, Marcel Duchamp and Robert Delaunay were causing a stir in the Paris art world. Chagall’s popularity began to spread beyond La Ruche, and in May 1914 he traveled to Berlin to help organize his first solo exhibition, at Der Sturm Gallery. Chagall remained in the city until the highly acclaimed show opened that June. He then returned to Vitebsk, unaware of the fateful events to come. War, Peace and Revolution In August 1914 the outbreak of World War I precluded Chagall’s plans to return to Paris. The conflict did little to stem the flow of his creative output, however, instead merely giving him direct access to the childhood scenes so essential to his work, as seen in paintings such as Jew in Green (1914) and Over Vitebsk (1914). His paintings from this period also occasionally featured images of the war’s impact on the region, as with Wounded Soldier (1914) and Marching (1915). But despite the hardships of life during wartime, this would also prove to be a joyful period for Chagall. In July 1915 he married Bella, and she gave birth to a daughter, Ida, the following year. Their appearance in works such as Birthday (1915), Bella and Ida by the Window (1917) and several of his “Lovers” paintings give a glimpse of the island of domestic bliss that was Chagall’s amidst the chaos. To avoid military service and stay with his new family, Chagall took a position as a clerk in the Ministry of War Economy in St. Petersburg. While there he began work on his autobiography and also immersed himself in the local art scene, befriending novelist Boris Pasternak, among others. He also exhibited his work in the city and soon gained considerable recognition. That notoriety would prove important in the aftermath of the 1917 Russian Revolution when he was appointed as the Commissar of Fine Arts in Vitebsk. In his new post, Chagall undertook various projects in the region, including the 1919 founding of the Academy of the Arts. Despite these endeavors, differences among his colleagues eventually disillusioned Chagall. In 1920 he relinquished his position and moved his family to Moscow, the post-revolution capital of Russia. In Moscow, Chagall was soon commissioned to create sets and costumes for various productions at the Moscow State Yiddish Theater, where he would paint a series of murals titled Introduction to the Jewish Theater as well. In 1921, Chagall also found work as a teacher at a school for war orphans. By 1922, however, Chagall found that his art had fallen out of favor, and seeking new horizons he left Russia for good. Flight After a brief stay in Berlin, where he unsuccessfully sought to recover the work exhibited at Der Sturm before the war, Chagall moved his family to Paris in September 1923. Shortly after their arrival, he was commissioned by art dealer and publisher Ambroise Vollard to produce a series of etchings for a new edition of Nikolai Gogol's 1842 novel Dead Souls. Two years later Chagall began work on an illustrated edition of Jean de la Fontaine’s Fables, and in 1930 he created etchings for an illustrated edition of the Old Testament, for which he traveled to Palestine to conduct research. Chagall’s work during this period brought him new success as an artist and enabled him to travel throughout Europe in the 1930s. He also published his autobiography, My Life (1931), and in 1933 received a retrospective at the Kunsthalle in Basel, Switzerland. But at the same time that Chagall’s popularity was spreading, so, too, was the threat of Fascism and Nazism. Singled out during the cultural "cleansing" undertaken by the Nazis in Germany, Chagall’s work was ordered removed from museums throughout the country. Several pieces were subsequently burned, and others were featured in a 1937 exhibition of “degenerate art” held in Munich. Chagall’s angst regarding these troubling events and the persecution of Jews in general can be seen in his 1938 painting White Crucifixion. With the eruption of World War II, Chagall and his family moved to the Loire region before moving farther south to Marseilles following the invasion of France. They found a more certain refuge when, in 1941, Chagall’s name was added by the director of the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York City to a list of artists and intellectuals deemed most at risk from the Nazis’ anti-Jewish campaign. Chagall and his family would be among the more than 2,000 who received visas and escaped this way. Haunted Harbors Arriving in New York City in June 1941, Chagall discovered that he was already a well-known artist there and, despite a language barrier, soon became a part of the exiled European artist community. The following year he was commissioned by choreographer Léonide Massine to design sets and costumes for the ballet Aleko, based on Alexander Pushkin’s “The Gypsies” and set to the music of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. But even as he settled into the safety of his temporary home, Chagall’s thoughts were frequently consumed by the fate befalling the Jews of Europe and the destruction of Russia, as paintings such as The Yellow Crucifixion...

after Henri MATISSE (1869-1954) Lithograph after a drawing of 1941 Printed signature and date Book plate from Aragon. Henri Matisse: Dessins, Thèmes et Variations : précédés d...

Salvador Dali - Nude with Raised Arms - Original Handsigned Lithograph Dimensions: 77 x 55 cm 1970 Signed in pencil and numbered Edition : /CXX References : Field 70-8(Page 158)

Salvador Dali - The Biblia Sacra was published in 1969 by Rizzoli of Rome - SIGNATURE : printed in the image - LIMITED : 1499 - SIZE : 19 x 13 3/4" - REFERENCES : Michler and Lopsi...

Salvador Dali - The Biblia Sacra was published in 1969 by Rizzoli of Rome - SIGNATURE : printed in the image - LIMITED : 1499 - SIZE : 19 x 13 3/4" - RE...

Jean Cocteau - Marine Mountains - Original Lithograph Dimensions: 38 x 28 cm Edition: 200 In Rives From: COCTEAU. — VERDET (André). Montagnes marines. S. l. (Paris), Les Messagers du...

This artwork is part of a project called "In Portugal", which consists of a selection of photographs taken in public sites throughout the Iberian country. Typical of Candida Höfer, the artist has photographed empty interiors of libraries, museums, palaces and theaters. Deutsche Oper am Rhein Düsseldorf - Contemporary, 21st Century, C Print, Limited Edition...

Jean-Paul Riopelle - Original Lithograph 1976 Dimensions: 32 x 25 cm Revue XXe Siècle Edition: Cahiers d'art published under the direction of G. di San Lazzaro. Jean-Paul Riopelle...

Salvador Dali - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - Original Handsigned Etching Dimensions: 38 x 28 cm 1967 Signed in pencil EA in Sanguine Jean Sc...

Leonor Fini - Servants - Original Handsigned Lithograph Les Elus de la Nuit 1986 Conditions: excellent Handsigned and Numbered Edition: 230 Dimensions: 38 x 28 cm Editions: Trinckve...

Anthony Walker (British, 1726–1765) The Mowhawk Indian Warrior with his Tomax, scalping Knive &c. • Mid 18th Century copper plate engraving on laid pa...

Published in the deluxe art review, XXe Siecle in 1958. Printed by Daniel Jacomet. 1958 Dimensions: 32 x 25 cm Publisher: G. di San Lazzaro. Catalogue raisonne: Dupin 1312 Biogr...

Salvador Dali - The Biblia Sacra was published in 1969 by Rizzoli of Rome - SIGNATURE : printed in the image - LIMITED : 1499 - SIZE : 19 x 13 3/4" - REFERENCES : Michler and Lopsi...

Lithograph numbered and signed by hand 19/60 edition From Israel collection

Henri Michaux - Beach - Original Lithograph 1956 Dimensions: 32 x 25 cm Edition: G. di San Lazzaro. From the art review XXème siècle Unsigned and unumbered as issued

Original Poster promoting Rolex' Submariner, reference 1680, created by Celestino Piatti, a very productive Swiss Graphic Designer (1922-2007) known for his charm and subtle humor, p...

Salvador Dali - Cherries - Original Hand-Signed Lithograph Dimensions: P. 57 x 37 cm Sheet: 75 x 56 cm Handsigned Edition: EC.d (collaborator edition "d") Excellent Condition Refer...

Paint by Pierre Auguste COT in 1873 Engraved by Amédée et Eugène Varin Entered according to act of congress in the year 1875 by M. Knoedler & co in the office of the librarian at Was...

Joana Vasconcelos, Filament I Filament I, Contemporary, 21st Century, Pigment Print, Limited Edition, Edition Pigment Print Edition of 25 111.8 x 85.3 cm (44 x 33.5 in) Signed and nu...

Joana Vasconcelos, Vitrail 2 Vitrail 2, Contemporary, 21st Century, Pigment Print, Limited Edition, Edition Pigment Print Edition of 25 111.7 x 86.1 cm (44 x 33.5 in) Signed, numbere...

Joan Miro - Moon Bird, Sun Bird - Original Lithograph 1964 From the journal "XXe Siecle" Unsigned edition of unknown size Dimensions: 32 x 24 cm Publisher: G. di San Lazzaro. Refere...

Lithograph numbered and signed by hand 19/60 edition From Israel collection

Pablo Picasso (D’après) Arlequin au Miroir, 1923 Knoedler, Paris, 1971, 26 octobre-30 novembre Par Henri Deschamps Imprimeur : Litho-offset on paper Edition: Mourlot, Paris 76 x ...

Joana Vasconcelos, Pandora II Pandora II, Contemporary, 21st Century, Pigment Print, Limited Edition, Edition Pigment Print Edition of 25 111.7 x 86.1 cm (44 x 33.5 in) Signed, numbe...

Salvador Dali - Nude with Guitar - Original Etching Dimensions: 38 x 28 cm Edition: 235 1967 embossed signature On Arches Vellum References : Field 67-10 (p. 34-35)

Salvador Dali - Cup of Chocolate - Original Etching Dimensions: 38 x 28 cm Edition: 390 1967 On Rives Vellum References : Field 67-4 (p. 32-33) / Michler & Lopsinger 174 to 187.

Marie Laurencin - Woman Angel - Original Etching Paris, Le Gerbier, 1946 Edition of 340 Signed in the plate

Original Vintage Poster in bright and crisp colors by the Dutch graphic design legend Wim Crouwel, advertising rather the museum's collection of works by...

Yue Minjun, Birds of Peace Contemporary, 21st Century, Lithograph, Limited Edition, Chinese Lithograph Edition of 130 80 × 120 cm (47 1/5 × 31 1/2 in) Stamped Signature, numbered in Roman numerals In mint condition, as acquired from the publisher PLEASE NOTE: Edition numbers could vary from the one shown in the pictures. The pictures shown are only for illustrative reasons, the piece is offered unframed. The print is mounted on double sheet of paper with a poem on one spread and print on the other. In fantastical paintings populated with heightened, hysterical self-portraits, Yue Minjun satirizes contemporary society and art historical tropes. Yue paints himself in fluorescent hues with a gaping grin. He occasionally multiplies his likeness, making his compositions even more menacing; his style has made him a pioneer of China’s Cynical Realism movement. Yue’s influences include Chinese socialist realism, Surrealism, and European classical paintings. He studied oil painting at Hebei Normal University in Shijiazhuang and has exhibited in Hong Kong, Berlin, Shenzhen, Shanghai, London, Basel, and New York. Yue has been the subject of numerous institutional shows at venues such as the Macao Museum, the ARoS Aarhus Art Museum, the National Art Museum of China, the Kunstmuseum Bonn, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Bern. YUE MINJUN Yue Min-Jun (born 1962, Daqing, China) is one of the leading Chinese artists. He is best known for oil paintings depicting formations of his laughing self-portraits in various settings. His iconography is easily recognisable, it challenges social and cultural conventions by depicting objects and political issues in a radical, abstract, ironic and cynical manner. Yue Min-Jun initially started painting as a hobby, subsequently he graduated from the Oil Painting Department of Hebei Normal University, China in 1985. In the 90s he joined an artist community in Yuan Ming Yuan, a village near Beijing where he began to form his style and iconography. The paintings, sculptures, and installations of Yue Minjun feature uniform laughing pink faces, which appear to be self-portraits. Through various symbols, metaphors, signs, or through depictions of daily life the artist constructs various realities against which the laughing figures are rendered. "In my work, laughter is a representation of a state of helplessness, lack of strength and participation, with the absence of our rights that society has imposed on us." —Yue Minjun Yue became famous after his participation in the 48th Venice Biennale in 1999, which granted him access to international art. One of the best-known paintings by Yue Minjun and an icon for modern Chinese art and the Cynical Realism movement is Execution. It was painted in 1995 and is generally regarded as a reaction to the Tiananmen Square...

Yue Minjun, Starry Night Lithograph Edition of 130 120 x 80 cm (47.2 x 31.5 in) Stamped Signature, numbered in Roman numerals In mint condition, as acquired from the publisher PLEAS...

Joana Vasconcelos, Filament II Filament II, Contemporary, 21st Century, Pigment Print, Limited Edition, Edition Pigment Print Edition of 25 111.8 x 85.3 cm (44 x 33.5 in) Signed and ...

Imi Knoebel, Una's Haus Contemporary, 21st Century, Linocut, Limited Edition, Abstract Art Linocut Edition of 100 69 x 100 cm (27.1 x 39.3 in) Signed, accompanied by Certificate of ...

Prouvost's work is as whimsical as it is penetrating: it addresses miscommunication and ideas becoming lost in translation. The Bum Glass(es) were created on the occasion of her marr...

Abdulnasser Gharem Al Siraat (The Path) 2011 Silkscreen 127 × 180 cm (50 × 70.9 in), unframed Signed and numbered Edition of 45 In excellent conditi...

Erwin Wurm is widely recognized as a prominent contemporary sculptor. Taking on a new approach, the artist explores his first encounter with flat canvases and paint, thus creating wh...

Yue Minjun, Fighting Contemporary, 21st Century, Lithograph, Limited Edition, Chinese Lithograph Edition of 130 80 x 120 cm (47 1/5 × 31 1/2 in) Stamped Signature, numbered in Roman numerals In mint condition, as acquired from the publisher PLEASE NOTE: Edition numbers could vary from the one shown in the pictures. The pictures shown are only for illustrative reasons, the piece is offered unframed. The print is mounted on double sheet of paper with a poem on one spread and print on the other. In fantastical paintings populated with heightened, hysterical self-portraits, Yue Minjun satirizes contemporary society and art historical tropes. Yue paints himself in fluorescent hues with a gaping grin. He occasionally multiplies his likeness, making his compositions even more menacing; his style has made him a pioneer of China’s Cynical Realism movement. Yue’s influences include Chinese socialist realism, Surrealism, and European classical paintings. He studied oil painting at Hebei Normal University in Shijiazhuang and has exhibited in Hong Kong, Berlin, Shenzhen, Shanghai, London, Basel, and New York. Yue has been the subject of numerous institutional shows at venues such as the Macao Museum, the ARoS Aarhus Art Museum, the National Art Museum of China, the Kunstmuseum Bonn, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Bern. “[...] I choose to paint laughter, to communicate a sense of pleasure and happiness, but actually, it hides a double perspective of drama and suffering.„ —Yue Minjun YUE MINJUN Yue Min-Jun (born 1962, Daqing, China) is one of the leading Chinese artists. He is best known for oil paintings depicting formations of his laughing self-portraits in various settings. His iconography is easily recognisable, it challenges social and cultural conventions by depicting objects and political issues in a radical, abstract, ironic and cynical manner. Yue Min-Jun initially started painting as a hobby, subsequently he graduated from the Oil Painting Department of Hebei Normal University, China in 1985. In the 90s he joined an artist community in Yuan Ming Yuan, a village near Beijing where he began to form his style and iconography. The paintings, sculptures, and installations of Yue Minjun feature uniform laughing pink faces, which appear to be self-portraits. Through various symbols, metaphors, signs, or through depictions of daily life the artist constructs various realities against which the laughing figures are rendered. "In my work, laughter is a representation of a state of helplessness, lack of strength and participation, with the absence of our rights that society has imposed on us." —Yue Minjun Yue became famous after his participation in the 48th Venice Biennale in 1999, which granted him access to international art. One of the best-known paintings by Yue Minjun and an icon for modern Chinese art and the Cynical Realism movement is Execution. It was painted in 1995 and is generally regarded as a reaction to the Tiananmen Square...

Yue Minjun, Floating Clouds Contemporary, 21st Century, Lithograph, Limited Edition Lithograph Edition of 130 80 x 120 cm (31.4 x 47.2 in) Stamped Signa...

Jean Jansem (1920-2013) Christina et sa poupée, 1985 Lithographie sur papier Arches Signée et justifiée 76 x 54 cm Imprimeur: Mourlot, Paris Editeur Sanbi, Tokyo Bibliographie: Jan...

Abdulnasser Gharem In Transit (with Diamond Dust) 2013 Silkscreen with Diamond Dust 137 × 182 cm (53.9 × 71.7 in), unframed Signed and dated on the ...

The Don: One of the most recognizable figures in poster history ever, quietly reveling in the simple delights of a glass of ruby port – typically thought of as a horseman, clad in a ...

Erwin Wurm Wobbly, 2023 Relief print on canvas 100 × 80 × 4.5 cm (39.4 × 31.5 × 1.8 in) Signed and numbered Edition of 50 PLEASE NOTE: Images of edition number are example reference...

Jean Miotte - Rare Original Signed Lithograph Title: Abstract Composition Dimensions: 76 x 56 cm Edition: 64/99 Signed and Numbered in pencil Jean Miotte, 1926 - 2016 Miotte came o...

Jean Jansem (1920-2013) Le petit soldat, 1993 Lithographie sur papier Arches Signée et justifiée 76 x 50 cm Imprimeur: Arts-Litho, Paris Editeurs: Jansem, Paris - Enrico Navarra B...

Erwin Wurm Melt, 2023 Relief print on canvas 100 × 80 × 4.5 cm (39.4 × 31.5 × 1.8 in) Signed and numbered Edition of 50 PLEASE NOTE: Images of edition number are example references ...

Salvador Dali - Original Etching Stamp signed by Dali Edition of 294 copies. Paper : Arches vellum. Dimensions : 16x12". Catalogue Raisonné : Field 68-6 (p. 40-41). Salvador Dal...

Salvador Dali - The Kidnapping - from "Les Amours de Cassandre" Original Etching From the suite on Silk made for editions 9 to 34 Dimensions: 38,5 x 28,5 cm 1968 References : Michler...

Pierre Soulages - Original Lithograph Published in the deluxe art review "XXe siècle" 1970 Unsigned as published Dimensions: 32 x 24 cm Pierre Soulages or the "painter of black" as ...

Original Lithograph by Jean Cocteau Title: Woman Portrait Signed in the plate Dimensions: 32 x 25.5 cm Edition: 200 1959 Publisher: Bibliophiles Du Palais Unnumbered as issued

Marino Marini - Horses - Original Lithograph 1951 Dimensions: 32 x 24 cm From the art review XXe siècle Unsigned and unumbered as issued

Ernst Fuchs (Austrian, 1930 - 2015) Zyklopische Landschaft, 1967 (Cyclopean Landscape) • Coloured Aquatint etching on rag paper (Prob. French Arches paper) • Sheet ca. 31.5 x 56 cm • Plate, ca. 22.5 x 48 cm • Signed bottom right • Inscribed in pencil bottom left: EA I/I (= Artist’s proof, print No. 1 out a run of one print) Worldwide shipping for this object is complimentary - There are no additional charges for handling & delivery. Ernst Fuchs was an Austrian painter...

Cy Twombly, Studio Lexington Contemporary, 21st Century, Dry-print, Limited Edition Dry-print on cardboard Edition of 50 43.1 x 27.9 cm (17 x 11 in) Signed and numbered, accompanied ...

Inspired by contemporary tensions in China, Zhang Xiaogang makes grim, unsettling portraits that consider identity and heredity in a collectivist state. The artist draws on influence...

Thomas Ranft (1945) - Hier und dort II, 1984 - Abstract Etching - Edition 3 / 15 Thomas Ranft (German, 1945) Hier und dort, II , 1984 • Coloured Etching • Sheet ca. 55 x 42 cm • T...

Aegidius Sadeler (Flemish, 1570–1629) Romantic woodland scene with traveler and his laden mule passing by a seated figure resting on the roadside • 16th, possibly early 17th century • Copper plate engraving on laid paper with circular watermark • Trimmed sheet, ca. 17 x 21 cm • No bothersome stains, damages or restorations Worldwide shipping for this object is complimentary - There are no additional charges for handling & delivery. Aegidius Sadeler also known as Aegidius Sadeler II was a prolific Flemish engraver who was principally active at the Prague court of Rudolf II. The scene engraved is after an image created by Roelant Savery (1576 - 1639). also known as Roeland(t) Maertensz Saverij, was a Flanders-born Dutch Golden Age painter. The print was published by the Sadeler family member Marco Sadeler...

Marino Marini - Knight - Original Lithograph 1968 Dimensions: 32 x 48 cm From the art review XXe siècle Unsigned and unumbered as issued

Jean Cocteau White Book - Autobiography about Cocteau's discovery of his homosexuality. The book was first published anonymously and created a scandal. Original Handcolored Lithograph...

Salvador Dali - The Winged Demon - Original Stamp-Signed Etching Stamp signed by Dali Edition of 294 copies. Paper : Arches vellum. Dimensions : 16x12"....

Leonor Fini - Cats - Original Engraving Mme.Helvetius' Cats Original etching created in 1985, Printed Signature (LF). Conditions: excellent Edition: 100 Support: Arches paper. Dimensions: Paper dimensions: 44 x 28 cm Editions: Moret, Paris. Leonor Fini is considered one of the most important women artists of the mid-twentieth century, along with Leonora Carrington, Frida Kahlo, Meret Oppenheim, Remedios Varo, and Dorothea Tanning – most of whom Fini knew well. Her career, which spanned some six decades, included painting, graphic design, book illustration, product design (the renowned torso-shaped perfume bottle for Schiaparelli’s Shocking), and set and costume design for theatre, ballet, opera, and film. In this compellingly readable, exhaustively researched account, author Peter Webb brings Fini’s provocative art and unconventional personal life, as well as the vibrant avant-garde world in which she revolved, vividly in life. Born in Buenos Aires in 1907 (August 30 – January 18, 1996, Paris) to Italian and Argentine parents, Leonor grew up in Trieste, Italy, raised by her strong-willed, independent mother, Malvina. She was a virtually self-taught artist, learing anatomy directly from studying cadavers in the local morgue and absorbing composition and technique from the Old Masters through books and visits to museums. Fini’s fledging attempts at painting in Trieste let her to Milan, where she participated in her first group exhibition in 1929, and then to Paris in 1931. Her vivacious personality and flamboyant attire instantly garnered her a spotlight in the Parisian art world and she soon developed close relationships with the leading surrealist writers and painters, including Paul Eluard, Salvador Dali, Man Ray, and Max Ernst, who became her lover for a time. The only surrealist she could not abide because of his misogyny was André Breton. Although she repeatedly exhibited with them, she never considered herself a surrealist. The American dealer Julien Levy, very much impressed by Fini’s painting and smitten by her eccentric charms, invited her to New York in 1936, where she took part in a joint gallery exhibition with Max Ernst and met many American surrealists, including Joseph Cornell and Pavel Tchelitchew. Her work was included in MoMA’s pivotal Fantastic Art, Dada and Surrealism exhibition, along with De Chirico, Dali, Ernst, and Yves Tanguy. In 1939 in Paris she curated an exhibition of surrealist furniture for her childhood friend Leo Castelli for the opening of his first gallery. Introductions to her exhibition catalogues were written by De Chirico, Ernst, and Jean Cocteau. A predominant theme of Fini’s art is the complex relationship between the sexes, primarily the interplay between the dominant female and the passive, androgynous male. In many of her most powerful works, the female takes the form of a sphinx, often with the face of the artist. Fini was also an accomplished portraitist; among her subjects were Stanislao Lepri...