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19 Scène de pesage, 1949 Signed lower right 'Raoul Dufy' Oil on canvas 55 1/8 x 63 3/8 in, 140 x 161 cm Provenance Commissioned Prince Aly Khan (in 1949) Gérard Oury Collection (and thence by descent to the previous owner) Private collection Literature J.P. Crespelle, 'Raoul Dufy il y a cinquante ans faisait banco sur la jeunesse', L'Officiel, September 1975, p.237, no.618 (illus. in colour) Geneva, Maurice Laffaille, Raoul Dufy, Catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre peint, Tome III, Editions Motte, 1976, p.291, no.1277 (illus. with incorrect dimensions given) Dufy was a keen frequenter of the racecourses in France at Deauville, Longchamp and Chantilly. From these fashionable destinations, the artist was introduced to wealthy clients and the latest trends. Particularly between 1923 and 1925, Dufy often visited these races with French couturier Paul Poiret to glimpse their own textiles being worn by glamorous spectators. It was through these excursions that Dufy was introduced to the socialite and racehorse owner Prince Aly Khan. Himself a keen rider, Khan commissioned Scene de pésage in 1949 as a continuation of the popular Paddock series from earlier in the 1940s. Made at the height of his career shortly before his receipt of the Grand Prix at the Venice Biennale in 1952, this commission reflects the popularity and importance of Dufy's social scenes. In Scene de pésage the riders and their horses are assessed and weighed before a race. This ritual reflects the traditions of society and a specific moment within the pageantry of the race. Dufy draws particular attention to the character of the jockey in white shorts and a yellow jersey against the wash of vivid green across the composition. Curator Bryan Robertson described Dufy's use of colour in these later racecourse works saying: 'Gradually, in Dufy's racecourse scenes... everything is given up to the crisp, jaunty interaction between green turf, red brick buildings, white railings, multi-coloured crowds, green trees against blue sky with sprightly puffs of clouds'. The first of these Paddock works, also known as Les Courses (1913), can now be found in the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville in Paris. A further example, Le Paddock à Deauville, was the first of Dufy's work to enter a national collection at the Musée du Luxembourg.