16 - Yvonne Blake - Costume sketch for José Antonio and the Ballets Españoles - Inscribed in the upper left corner: "LOS BALLETS ESPAÑOLES"; in the upper right corner: "DIANA SAN ANDRES / 1 (circled) chorus x 7"; various annotations with arrows referring to specific parts of the costume: "Velvet / WHITE / raw silk / off-white / white taffeta. / black ajanza (?)". Signed and dated in the lower right corner: "Yvonne Blake / 1993." Framed in period frame with original glass.

Yvonne Blake - Costume sketch for José Antonio and the Ballets Españoles - Inscribed in the upper left corner: "LOS BALLETS ESPAÑOLES"; in the upper right corner: "DIANA SAN ANDRES / 1 (circled) chorus x 7"; various annotations with arrows referring to specific parts of the costume: "Velvet / WHITE / raw silk / off-white / white taffeta. / black ajanza (?)". Signed and dated in the lower right corner: "Yvonne Blake / 1993." Framed in period frame with original glass. Yvonne Blake worked for the company José Antonio y los Ballets Españoles, founded and directed by the prestigious dancer José Antonio (José Antonio Ruiz de la Cruz, Madrid, 1951), creating costume designs for works such as *Aires de villa y corte*, with original music by José Nieto, which had its world premiere at the Teatro Lope de Vega in Seville on January 28, 1994. Another production by José Antonio that same year was *Cachorro*, which premiered four days before the previous work at the same venue in Seville, with stage direction and dramaturgy by Salvador Távora. On this occasion, it appears that the costume designs were handled by Creativos Fridor S.L., with a large cast of artists, among whom we would like to highlight Diana San Andrés, Nuria Castejón, and Aloña Alonso— three women whose names appear in Yvonne Blake’s own handwriting on two costume sketches featured in this auction—specifically Lot 16 (Diana San Andrés) and Lot 17 (Nuria Castejón and Aloña Alonso). This sketch is signed and dated by the artist in 1993, the year before the premiere of both films mentioned. The renowned film and theater costume designer Yvonne Blake (Manchester, 1940 – Madrid, 2018) won her Academy Award at the 44th ceremony for Best Costume Design for the film *Nicholas and Alexandra* (directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, 1971), the same ceremony at which Charlie Chaplin received his Honorary Oscar. Blake is remembered as the designer of the Superman costume (directed by Richard Donner, 1978) worn by Christopher Reeve; the filming of which was plagued by difficulties caused by the fabrics and colors of the fictional hero’s attire. She won four Goya Awards in Spain for Best Costume Design for *Remando al viento* (1988), *Canción de cuna* (1994), *Carmen* (2003), and *El puente de San Luis Rey* (2004). Her film costume designs appeared in movies starring prominent actors and actresses such as Sophia Loren (*The Venus of Anger* in Israel, directed by Daniel Mann, 1966), Liza Minnelli (*Fahrenheit 451*, directed by François Truffaut), Michael Caine and Omar Sharif (The Last Valley, directed by James Clavell), Anthony Hopkins (All Creatures Great and Small), Elizabeth Taylor (An Hour in the Night), Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn (Robin and Marian), Ava Gardner (Harem), Al Pacino (Looking for Richard), not to mention his notable role in the musical *Jesus Christ Superstar* (by Andrew Lloyd Webber). She collaborated with the prestigious Peris Hermanos fashion house, beginning in the 1960s, on the final production of her designs. With Gonzalo Suárez, she worked on *Rowing Against the Wind*, *Don Juan in Hell*, *The Anonymous Queen*, and *The Detective and Death*; with Vicente Aranda, on *Carmen* and *Tirante el Blanco*. Although she was not an actress, she was the first woman to be awarded the National Film Award in 2012 and served as President of the Spanish Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AACCE) in 2016. She passed away in Madrid in July 2018.