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Ballet Art and the Robert Bunting Collection

Guest blog post by Hermine Chivian-Cobb, private art dealer and certified appraiser in the Appraisers Association of America

Nicholas Konstantinovich Roerich (Russian, 1874-1947), Scene with Three Figures in Costume from Le Sacre du Printemps (Lot 418, Estimate $4,000-$6,000)

The Robert Bunting Collection of costume and set designs, posters and photographs for ballet is extremely rich and diversified. It ranges from the 17th to the 20th century, and includes works for Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes, the Nijinska Théâtre de la Danse, the Martha Graham Dance Company, the Royal Ballet and the New York City Ballet, among many others. The designs, made for interpretation by dressmakers and carpenters, are frequently all we have left of evanescent performances.

Scenic design evolved from court festivities, such as those constructed by the Bibiena family in the 17th and 18th century and remembered by their intricate drawings with Baroque perspective, depicting infinite vistas. These drawings and engravings, with their detailed architectural motifs, were influential for Léon Bakst, Alexandre Benois, and Oliver Messel, whose costume and set designs can be seen in the Bunting Collection.

The revolution in stage design at the beginning of the 20th century was accomplished by the brilliant Russian impresario Serge Diaghilev; not an artist, musician or dancer himself, but the creative force behind the Ballets Russes. Diaghilev’s genius was to source old Russian folk tales and music and create something entirely new by commissioning the best artists and composers and exploiting the Western fantasy of an exotic Russia. There are some wonderful examples of costumes and sets in the Bunting Collection by artists who collaborated with Diaghilev, including Bakst and Benois, Boris Anisfeld and Roerich (in the groundbreaking Sacre du Printemps, with a score by Stravinsky and choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky).

Pavel Tchelitchew (Russian/American, 1898-1957), Group of Dancers in a Scene from Errante, 1935 (Lot 439, Estimate $1,500-$2,000)

After Diaghilev’s death, the company disbanded, many dancers remaining in what became the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo, with Balanchine as the ballet master. Diaghilev always sought modernity; and in the 20s, employed well-known Western artists, many of whom created set and costume designs for the first time, such as Picasso and Matisse, as well as artists from the School of Paris. Some of these artists were later described as the ‘Neo-Romantics’ or ‘Neo-Humanists’, reacting to abstract art with figurative, nostalgic work. This group, including Eugene Berman, Pavel Tchelitchew and Christian Bérard, is well represented in the Bunting Collection (with designs by Bérard for Roland Petit’s Les Forains and Tchelitchew for Errante, choreographed by George Balanchine).

Jean Hugo (French, 1894-1984), Set Design for Les Cent Baisers, c. 1935 (Lot 377, Estimate $1,000-$1,500)

In addition to the designs by Bérard, there are many other works by French artists, dating from the 1930s to the 1960s, with costume and set designs by André Derain and Fernand Léger, as well as Jean Hugo, who designed Les Cent Baisers (The Hundred Kisses) from 1935, choreographed by Nijinska. The set depicts a Tudor castle, while the dancers had Tudor ornaments on their tutus.

In this comprehensive group are some interesting designs by British artists, the earliest of which is by Albert Rutherston for Anna Pavlova in 1914. There are two costume designs by Hugh Stevenson for Antony Tudor’s The Planets from 1934, one for Tudor himself in the part of Neptune and the other for Kyra Nijinsky, Nijinsky’s daughter. The English painter Oliver Messel designed a production of the Sleeping Beauty, represented by a costume for the Garland Girl. (The original production was from 1946). Messel had seen a performance of Bakst’s lavish Sleeping Beauty in 1921 in London and thought he could do better.

The New York City Ballet was a great favorite of Dr. Bunting and a catalyst for his collecting activity. In the forthcoming sale are many costume and set designs for the Ballet, including a costume for Ashton’s Illuminations by Cecil Beaton (1950), a costume for Jerome Robbins’ Les Noces by Irene Sharaff (1969),  and a set by Rouben Ter-Arutunian for Ballet Imperial (1964).

Irene Sharaff (American, 1910-1993), Sheet with Four Costume Designs for Mata Hari, c. 1967 (Lot 427, Estimate $2,000-$3,000)

There are costume designs for well-known dancers: Anna Pavlova, Edward Villella and Judith Jamison, works with fabric swatches or color samples and others with elaborate instructions to the dressmakers. One of the most fascinating documents in the auction is a choreographic notation by Merce Cunningham for his 1957 Suite by Chance.

The auction of the Robert Bunting Collection on September 20th, 2013 in Boston represents an opportunity to share in these wonderful memories. Join us in Boston on Thursday, September 19, 2013 at 6PM for a lecture titled “20th Century Set and Costume Designs for the Ballet” and a gallery walk.

 

2 thoughts on “Ballet Art and the Robert Bunting Collection

  1. Pingback: 20th Century Set and Costume Designs for the Ballet | Skinner Inc.

  2. Pingback: The Robert Bunting Dance Collection | Prints, Photography, Paintings, Sculpture | Skinner Auction 2673B | Skinner Inc.

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