Tamara de Lempickka, at auction the portrait of his patron

Extraordinary celebration of scientific results and artistic skill, the “portrait of Dr. Boucard” captures the pioneer of medicine in a moment of dynamic brilliance. Estimated bacteriologist, Pierre Boucard has revolutionized pharmaceutical science with the invention in 1907 of Lactéol, a probiotic that laid the foundations for the modern research on the health of the intestine, still in use.

Immersed in a dramatic beam of light, Boucard turns to the glow, with one hand resting on his microscope and the other that holds a glass test tube. The cubist background and chiaroscuro create a dynamic tension that captures both the precision of the scientific survey and the refinement of the modern portrait. With its characteristic smooth and smooth finish and its sculptural precision, Tamara de Lempicka portrays Bouucard as an estimated scientist and a distinct man. His white trench coat, which recalls a laboratory shirt, suggests a cinematographic transformation. His overturned collar, his tie with pearl accents and his well -defined features transmit intellectual authorities and cosmopolitan charm at the same time. Looking away with quiet security, Boucard, like many of the subjects of Lempicka, emanates the refinement and ambition of the high society to which it belonged.

Escape from Russia during the revolution, Tamara de Lempicka settled in Paris in 1918 and was formed under the influence of Maurice Denis and André Lhote, whose cubist style left a lasting imprint on his work. In the mid -1920s he became the most sought -after portraitist from the European elite, attracting commissions from the Alta Milanese company after the success of his 1925 personal exhibition at the ‘Poetry shop’. The late 1920s marked a golden era for the artist, consolidating his reputation as a top female artist of the following years, the glamorous and high energy years between the two world wars. Thanks to Boucard’s generous financial support, the artist established a cutting-edge study in Rue Méchain in Paris, designed by the modernist architect Robert Mallet-Steeven. This space became both a creative place and a Glamor social center, where Lempicka hosted fashionable encounters that further consolidated its state -of -the -art artist image of modernity.

Giovanna Bertazzoni, president of Christie’s Europe, said: “The ‘Portrait of Dr. Boucard’ of Tamara Lempicka is a surprising mixture of modernity and individuality, which demonstrates its ability to intertwine personal identity with the scientific and cultural ambitions of his time.

The appearance of the auction of this painting is made even more timely and significant by the fact that coincides with the closure of the first large US retrospective of his work, at the De Young Museum in San Francisco. This sensational exhibition – Co -Curata by Furio Rinaldi and Gioia Mori – will soon move to the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, where he will open on March 9th. It was celebrated by the press from all over the world and has seen the participation of a record audience, confirming the “Lempick-Mania” who has conquered connoisseurs and amateurs in recent years.

(by Paolo Martini)