SERGUEI SOLOMKO (1867-1928) Portrait of Ida Rubinstein as Salome signed in Cyrillic and dated 'Solomko 909 Paris' (lower right), inscribed in Cyrillic and numbered 'Iudeyskaya Tsarevna N 150' [Jewish princess] (verso) watercolour on paper 12 x 10 cm EXHIBITIONS : Castello Carlo V, Lecce, Ballets Russes. I Classici della modernità, 3 November 2019 - 30 January 2020 Sheremetev Palace, St Petersburg, In Diaghilev's Circle. Destinies Cross, 14 November 2020 - 12 February 2021 In 1908, Ida Rubinstein made her debut in a private production of Oscar Wilde's Salome, which she had organised and financed. With minimal ballet training, she collaborated with Mikhail Fokine, who choreographed the Dance of the Seven Veils. Originally planned for the Mikhailovsky Theatre in St Petersburg as a charity event for the Russian Theatre Society, the production, with music by Alexander Glazuno, was directed by Vsevolod Meyerhold, and the sets were created by Leon Bakst. However, the production was banned by the censors. A single private performance took place, during which Rubinstein undressed during the Dance of the Seven Veils, provoking both scandal and fascination. Salome was performed without linguistic articulation, using only mimicry, as the Russian Orthodox Church had forbidden the staging of Wilde's text. The text was distributed to the audience in advance. A performance of the dance took place on 20 December (2 January 1909) at the Conservatoire Theatre. Fokine recalls: "Working on the dance of Salome was unique in my life. I had to simultaneously teach Rubinstein the art of dance and create the dance of Salome for her. Before that, she had studied very little dance and had made very little progress in this area. Her energy and stamina were a great help, as was her appearance. I thought it would be possible to do something unusual with her, in the style of Botticelli. She was tall, thin and beautiful, and provided interesting material from which I hoped to fashion a unique stage image. -Michel Fokine, Memoirs of a Ballet Master. London 1961, p. 137-138. Sergey Solomko (1867-1928) was a Russian painter, watercolourist and illustrator born in Saint Petersburg into the family of a general. He studied at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture from 1883 to 1887, then at the Imperial Academy of Arts in St Petersburg from 1887 to 1888. Solomko became famous for his masterful watercolours depicting historical, allegorical and fairytale scenes, in particular images of the life and folklore of Russian boyars. Solomko collaborated with leading magazines such as Mir Iskusstva, Golden Fleece, Pole and Shut, and illustrated works by Pushkin, Lermontov and Gogol. His work also appears on popular postcards. Solomko also designed for the Imperial Porcelain Manufactory and created miniatures for the Fabergé firm. At the buyer's request, we are happy to provide a general condition report for the lot described above. However, as we are not professional conservators or restorers, we strongly advise prospective buyers to carry out their own inspection or to consult a specialist or conservator of their choice for a full professional assessment. Descriptions of the condition of objects in the catalogue or in any correspondence are given for guidance only and should not be regarded as a substitute for a first-hand valuation. ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD 'AS IS' IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF SALE PUBLISHED IN THE CATALOGUE