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22 R A O U L D U F Y 1 8 7 7- 1 9 5 3 Bateaux Pavoises à Deauville, 1928 Signed 'Raoul Dufy' lower left Oil on canvas 15 ⅛ x 18 ⅛ in, 38.3 x 46 cm Provenance André Pisart, Brussels Liliane Pisart, Brussels (daughter of the above and inherited from the above) Nikola Mirkovic (gifted from the above. Nephew of the above) Literature Maurice Laffaille, Raoul Dufy, Catalogue raisonné de l'œuvre peint, Geneva, 1973, vol. II, no.810, pp.317 and 400 Bateaux Pavoises à Deauville depicts the joyful and dynamic atmosphere of boats on the Normandy coast, one of Dufy's favourite subjects. Deauville, often called the Parisian Riviera, had a glamorous international reputation with a racetrack, casino and Coco Chanel's first shop outside of Paris. Dufy observed and recorded the elegant upper classes pursuing their pastimes, scenes that produced some of his most celebrated works. During the 1920s and early 1930s Dufy was at the peak of his powers both in terms of the development of his own visual identity and its critical reception. Many of his most celebrated works were produced from this period. Two outstanding examples are: Deauville, Drying the Sails, 1933, in the Tate, London, and Sailing-Boats in Troville, 1936, in the Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg. Painted with dynamic brushstrokes, the composition sits on top of an invigorating Prussian blue ground; blending the calm, flat water of the harbour with a cloudless expanse of sky. Dufy's explanation for his preference of this colour was given in an interview with Pierre Courthion in 1951: "Blue is the only colour which keeps its own individuality across the spectrum. Take blue with its different nuances, from the darkest to the lightest; it will always be blue, whereas yellow darkens in shadow and fades out in lighter parts, dark red becomes brown and when diluted with white, it isn't red any more, but another color: pink". Bateaux Pavoises à Deauville belongs to a rich body of maritime work within Dufy's oeuvre. He spent many years divided between the Northern and Southern coasts of France and these relaxed, leisurely settings gave him ample opportunity to study and play with movement and colour. Dufy held a deep affection for the sea; "I know the sea as a swimmer, as a sailor and as a painter. It is as a painter that I love it the most! To me, the most beautiful shapes created by man are the violin, and the hull of a boat."