Location

223 20th Century Avant-Garde

Description

Inspired by J. S. Chardin’s 1725–26 still life of a stingray at the Musée du Louvre, Soutine reinterpreted the theme in a turbulent, luminescent manner. Every line and form undulates as if propelled by some unseen force. Tied up on two points, as if being tortured or crucified, the stingray assumes an expression of almost human anguish, transforming it into a powerful metaphor for suffering, perhaps referring to Soutine’s own life as a poor, immigrant artist in Paris.

Inscriptions

Inscription

Signed lower right: "Soutine"

Provenance

By 1927-1928

(Paul Guillaume [1891-1953], Paris, probably sold to Jacques Doucet ¹

1928-1929

Jacques Doucet [1853-1929], Paris, presumably by inheritance to his wife Jeanne Roger Doucet ²

Until 1951

(Cesar de Hauke, New York, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)

1951-

The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio

Provenance Footnotes

¹One of Soutine’s dealers, Guillaume handled much of the artist’s output in the 1920s. Guillaume also had his own collection, most of which was acquired by the French state in the 1960s and is now at the Musée de l’Orangerie. It is unclear in which capacity Guillaume handled the Cleveland Soutine.

²Doucet, the influential French couturier, amassed an extensive art, furniture, and book collection. When in his collection the Soutine hung next to Picasso’s Tete de l’Arlequin and Les Desmoiselles d’Avignon.

Provenance Citations

Tuchman, Maurice, Esti Dunow, and Klaus Perls. Chaim Soutine (1893-1943): catalogue raisonné = Werkverzeichnis. Köln: Benedikt Taschen Verlag, 1993.

Waldemar, George. Soutine. Paris: Éditions Le Triangle, 1928.

Raynal, Maurice. Modern French Painters. 1928.

Citations

Ditner, David C. "Chaim Soutine's Still Life with Rayfish." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 67, no. 2 (1980): 41-49. Reproduced: p. 42; Mentioned: p. 41-49 www.jstor.org

Exhibition history

NY, NY; Los Angeles; Cincinnati, OH. Jewish Museum, Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Cincinnati Art Museum. "Chaim Soutine" 4/26/98 - 5/2/99 exh. cat. figs. 51, 522, p. 120 and plate 22, p. 182.

Musée d'Orsay (organizer). Musee de l'Orangerie, Paris, France (10/02/2012 - 1/21/2013): "Chaïm Soutine (1893-1943), l'ordre du chaos", no cat. no, p. 117.

In Memoriam: Leonard C. Hanna, Jr.. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (March 4-April 7, 1958).

Chaïm Soutine. Museo d'Arte Moderna (organizer) (March 12-June 18, 1995).

Chaim Soutine. Israel Museum, 91710 Jerusalem, Israel (April 26-August 14, 1998); Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA (September 17, 1998-January 3, 1999); The Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, OH (February 14-May 2, 1999).

Monet to Dalí: Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Seoul Art Center, South Korea (December 22, 2006-March 28, 2007); Seoul Olympic Museum of Art, South Korea (April 7-May 20, 2007); Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver, Canada (June 9-September 16, 2007); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 21, 2007-January 13, 2008); Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN (February 15-June 1, 2008); Utah Museum of Fine Arts, Salt Lake City, UT (June 22-September 21, 2008); The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI (October 12, 2008-January 18, 2009).

Chaïm Soutine (1893-1943), l'ordre du chaos. Musée de l'Orangerie, Paris, France (October 2, 2012-January 21, 2013).