13 - JOSEPH INGUIMBERTY (1896–1971)

JOSEPH INGUIMBERTY (1896–1971) Study for “Work in the Rice Fields,” circa 1930 Charcoal on blue-penciled graph paper, monogrammed in the lower right corner 45.5 x 39.5 cm 17 7/8 x 15 ½ in. Provenance: Presumed collection of Gaston Rueff, owner of several businesses in Indochina—including, for example, the Cochinchina and Mimot River Shipping Companies—and an art collector with ties to the painter Private collection (received as a gift from the previous owner and subsequently passed down within the family) Private collection, Southern France (through descent from the previous owner) Expert Assessment: For the male worker in the foreground: Joseph Inguimberty, *Work in the Rice Fields*, 1930, Collection of the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Marseille (ill. 1) For the female worker in the background: Joseph Inguimberty, Workers in the Rice Fields, Museum Pasifika Collection (ill. 2)Bibliography for a related work: Giulia Pentcheff, Joseph Inguimberty 1896–1971, First Catalog of Paintings, Géménos, Groupe Horizon, 2012, no. 064 Giulia Pentcheff, Joseph Inguimberty 1896–1971, First Catalog of Paintings, Géménos, Groupe Horizon, 2012, no. 068 Description: The blue pencil grid visible in the background indicates that this study was used as an enlargement sketch for the creation of the masterful canvas “Work in the Rice Fields,” exhibited in 1931 in Vincennes and since housed at the Marseille Museum of Fine Arts. A drawing characteristic of Inguimberty’s Indochinese period, this sheet depicts porters carrying a balance pole, or gánh, a recurring motif in his work. The drawing technique allows the artist a free and spontaneous stroke. As one of the few studies from this period to have survived, this large sheet highlights his talent as a draftsman. The charcoal lines are strong, and the blue pencil grid is crisp. Since most of these preparatory sketches have been lost, it is moving to be able to admire one of the extremely rare drawings that, 100 years ago, served as the basis for his masterful compositions.