¤ HENRI MATISSE (1869-1954) NÉZY, 1941 Indian ink on paper Signed and dated '10/41' lower left India ink on paper; signed and dated lower left 51 X 38 CM - 20 1/8 X 15 IN. Mr Georges Matisse has confirmed the authenticity of this work. It is registered in his archives. A certificate can be obtained on request. PROVENANCE Private collection, France Then by descent to the current owner The Nézy double-portrait, painted in Nice in the early 1940s when Henri Matisse set up his studio in the former Hôtel Régina, depicts Nézy-Hamidé Chawkat. A Turkish princess and great-granddaughter of the last Sultan of Turkey, Abdul Hamid, Nézy moved to Nice with her grandmother after the proclamation of the Turkish Republic. The young woman came to the attention of Matisse, who came across her in the streets of Nice. The painter was struck by her beauty and asked her to pose for him, which she accepted. As Hilary Spurling recounts: "[Matisse] asked her if he could paint her, seeking her grandmother's formal permission like a suitor asking for her hand in marriage." H. Spurling, Matisse the Master, London, 2005, p. 410. The princess was his favourite model for almost two years, a prolific period for Matisse, who embarked on the project of publishing the work Thèmes et Variations with the publisher Alain Fabiani. This collection symbolised the artist's creative passion, with lithograph reproductions of 158 selected drawings. The Nézy double-portrait was probably intended to be included in the work published in 1943. At this time, Matisse was at the peak of his art, establishing himself as a remarkable draughtsman with a line that was both delicate and expressive. "The primary virtue of drawing, as of engraving, is clarity, its directness, linked to the sharpness of the line. Each gesture, simple but entirely controlled, is driven by instinct, but it is logic that dominates, even if one has the impression of impromptu..." Matisse, Le point, N° XXI-4e année N° spécial Matisse, July 1939