Lot 238: Semen Faibisovich , Russian b.1949 Therein Lies the Question, 1987 oil on canvas

signed with artist's intials in Cyrillic and dated 87 (lower left); signed, titled and inscribed in Cyrillic and dated 1987 (on the reverse) oil on canvas

measurements 78 1/2 by 59 in. alternate measurements 199.5 by 156 cm

Semion Faibisovich: Painting from the 1980s, Moscow, Regina Gallery, 2001, p. 40, illustrated

PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTION, CALIFORNIA
Semen Faibisovich's Therein Lies the Question is a rare conceptual piece by the artist that is meant to evoke a sense of mystery. The focal point is a question mark formed by shadows from an unseen window. At the upper left-hand, Faibisovich includes a fragment from another of his paintings, Zimnee solntse (Winter Sunshine), from his Moscow Commuter Train series. Faibisovich deliberately depictes the fragment out of focus, creating what he has referred to as a sense of "mystique."