Alexej von JAWLENSKY (1864-1941) Jew at prayer, 1891 Oil on canvas with inscriptions, signature, date and annotations on the back. 87 x 68 cm In a giltwood baguette frame. Certificate of authenticity issued on 20 May 2021 by the Jawlensky-Archiv. SA. Provenance : Collection of Dr Leifer by descent. Lost for over a hundred years, this work by Alexej von Jawlensky remained known thanks to two archive photographs widely published in reference works. They show Alexej von Jawlensky sitting in a studio in front of the painting in progress, with his friend Marianne Werefkin standing beside him. In these photographs, dated in the archives to around 1893, the painting is clearly recognisable. However, until 2020 it was still unknown and unlocated. While the influence of the Russian master Ilia Repine hung over the young years of a Jawlensky consumed by the desire to paint, the discovery of this painting, kept in a private collection in Bayonne for almost 80 years, highlights the European trajectory of this revolutionary of colour. Born into a family of Russian military aristocrats, Jawlensky was naturally drawn to this career. He climbed the career ladder with success, but deep down the desire to paint grew stronger and stronger as he became more independent. Jawlensky pushed open the doors of exhibitions, workshops and the various artistic circles in Saint Petersburg. He joined the studio of Ilia Repine, a prestigious master of Russian painting at the end of the 19th century. His enthusiasm for creation and his talent soon drew attention to him. Repine introduced him to Marianne Werefkin. A young woman of character, several years his senior, she was the great master's favourite pupil. A deep bond developed between the two young artists. Marianne Werefkin encouraged him to paint, always and everywhere. Coming from a wealthy family, she took the young Alexej with her to her classes and studio, and also to her country home to practise. In the summer of 1893, during a stay at Werefkin's "dacha", the two young artists visited the shtetls, the Jewish villages south of Moscow. Jawlensky produced a series of portraits of the inhabitants and old rabbis. The painting shown here is part of that series. At the time, the portrait was certainly one of the most fashionable genres. The initial format of the canvas might have suggested a full-length portrait. Like most of Jawlensky's works from this period, it was left partially unfinished. The canvas has been cut at the bottom, without taking away any of the work's power, but making it easier to move around. The long beard, the talit on the shoulders and the book sketched in the hands confirm the identity of this character. Although a few repeats mask the candle flame, the captivating gaze of the old Jew at prayer reveals both the surprise of a man caught in a moment of introspection and the liveliness of a spirit. This luminous gaze contrasts with the weight of the years and the thickness of the jacket and prayer shawl on the shoulders of an old man, perhaps a rabbi, whose people's history resonates with the harshness of the climate and hostile times. In a few touches of colour, green and mauve against a shade of brown, this gaze awakens the portrait and echoes the flame of the candle. Although there is still a long way to go towards the revolutionary expressionism of Münich and Murnau in the 1900s, the liveliness of the brushstrokes still owes much to the legacy of the teachings of Repine and Werefkin. The break with colour is still a long way off. On the back, the horizontal bar of the stretcher divides the canvas into two parts. The upper part still reveals the trace of a large signature by Alexej von Jawlensky. The lower part reveals a wealth of information: Prof. Ilja Repin (in Latin), Vera Repina and Jurij Repin (in Cyrillic, the names of Repin's wife and son) and Alexei Georgevitch Jawlensky / talented pupil of Ilya Repin and well-known artist in Paris. This work was created around 1891 (in Cyrillic). Repine's legacy is underlined by words that are probably those of his son Yuri Repine. Repine's reputation was far greater than that of Jawlensky, who had not yet produced the Expressionist revolution. Whether it was sent from Ilia's studio by his son Yuri, or directly by Jawlensky and Werefkin, the painting probably arrived in Western Europe and France around 1900. The painting was found in Bayonne in the private collection of Doctor Leifer. A doctor and art collector, Dr Leifer emigrated from Poland to France. When war broke out, he and his family left Paris to take refuge in Agen, in the Free Zone, taking a large part of the art collection with them. Dr Leifer later became president of the town's Jewish community. When they settled in Bayonne, the family took their art collection with them, including this painting, an ignored treasure that was rediscovered two generations later. This painting is one of the very earliest and rarest early works by Alexej von Jawlensky. Jawlensky's art was declared "degenerate" by the Nazis in 1937, and 72 of his works were confiscated from German museum collections. The work will be included in the artist's catalogue raisonné. Lot sold in partnership with Côte Basque Enchères Keywords : judaica, jew, jewish, hebrew, rabbis, jewish, torah, hebrew, hebraica, judaism, synagogue, zionism, pessach, pessach, haggada, haggadah, hagada, hagadah, passover, menora, menorah, hannuka, hannuca, hannucca, hanouccah, torah, juden, israélite, Israël, antisemitism, antisemitism, dreyfus, meguila, sepharade, sefarad, ketouba