5-23-2013; Haifa, Israel: A new and almost unknown painting by Mane-Katz will be displayed in the Mane-Katz Museum in Haifa which was opened in 1977 in the artist residence.
According to the owners, the painting with an important exhibition history was not included in the “Mane-Katz 1894-1962: The Complete Works” by Robert S. Aries and Jacques O’Hana (1970) solely because of his noble provenance and is what is called the fresh-to-market artwork.
The curator of the collection Mrs. Svetlana Reingold lifts the veil of the story: “We got the painting from the “first hand” – the man who, in fact, is depicted on the portrait. We spent a long time with him discussing , culminating in his personal story. She also added that since it is the portrait of his friend’s (Mr. Bernard Hayat) son, Mane-Katz treated it with outmost seriousness and embodied in the portrait of the boy all his talent and the best artistic principles inherent in his painting.
Mane-Katz got acquainted with Mr. Hayat in Paris. They became close due to Mr. Hayat interest in Mane-Katz’s art as well as their common origin – they were both Jews originated from Eastern Europe. Mane-Katz was a frequent visitor to the Hayat family home, where many of his paintings were displayed. When Bernard Hayat appealed to the artist with a request to do a portrait of his only son Hervé Richard, the boy was 10 years old. He posed for the master in an elegant suit with a cane, thus confirming his status as the son of a successful businessman which had a few shops of fashion in Paris.
1955 was a time of flourish and recognition of the master during his stay in Paris. A year later the painting was exhibited at the Salon d’Automne in Paris. Despite the intimacy of the portrait, Mr. Hayat did not mind to lend the artwork for the exhibition. With this exception, the painting was kept in Hayat’s family from the moment of its creation until recent days.
Mrs. Noa Tarshish, a former curator of the Mane-Katz Museum in Haifa, commented on this work:
“To the best of my knowledge and according to my understanding this painting is an authentic work by Mane-Katz. I found a photograph of this painting in the private album of Mane-Katz in the archive of the Mane-Katz Museum, Haifa. I believe it is 1955. Mane-Katz participated in the Salon d’Automne from 1924, nine times, until 1956. ” In 1956 Mane-Katz participated for the last time in the Salon d’Automne and there is only one painting by the artist listed in the catalogue: «Portrait de HR», No. 883 (H.R. — Hervé Richard (Hayat)).
The current curator of the Mane-Katz museum, Mrs. Svetlana Reingold, is certainly happy to show the fresh artwork: “From the moment we received the confirmation of the painting’s authenticity, we included it in the list of works scheduled to participate in our forthcoming shows, hence to display this work by Mane-Katz in one of the exhibitions in 2015.” Mrs. Reingold regularly launches such interesting exhibitions, featuring works by Mane-Katz including also important artworks by his colleagues, such as Chaïm Soutine, Amedeo Modigliani, Jules Pascin and Marc Chagall.
Today Mane-Katz paintings regularly appear on Impressionist and Modern Art sales at leading art auctions such as Christie’s and Sotheby’s in New-York, his artworks also can be found at auctions in Paris and Israel, where he spent his last years.
