Lot 16: * MOUSTAFA FARROUKH (Lebanon, 1901-1957) Au Crepuscule

Moustafa Farroukh (Lebanon, 1901-1957)
Au Crepuscule
oil on canvas, framed
signed (lower left), executed in 1930
65 x 50cm (25 9/16 x 19 11/16in).
FOOTNOTES
Provenance:
Property from a private collection, Beirut
Acquired directly by the above from the Estate of the Artist

Notes:
The original version of this painting is in the permanent collection of the Mussee D'Orsay: Paul Chabas, Au Crepuscule, vers 1905, Numéro d'inventaire: LUX 680

This rare and intriguing nude by Moustafa Farroukh is the artists reproduction of a famous painting by the same name. The original "Au Crepuscule" was painted by renowned late 19th century french artist Paul Chabas, who was Farroukh's tutor and mentor during the artists stay in Paris in the 1930's

The work depicts a nude girl or young woman standing in the shallow water of a lake, prominently lit by the moonlight. She is leaning slightly forward in an ambiguous posture, which can either be read as straightforward portrayal of the protecting her modesty, or can be interpreted more sexually, as an eroticisation of her innocence.

Female nudes were the dominant subject of painting in French Salons at the end of the 19th century. Female models had become more common than male ones beginning in the early 19th century, first serving allegorical roles or as muses, but eventually becoming models in their own right. In academic art, such as that of Chabas, the models were not portrayed as they were, but as idealized nudes, based on classical ideals.