Erté (Romain de Tirtoff) (1892-1990)
Quand l'amour meurt, c.1959
Original gouache on paper, signed in ballpoint pen, a working drawing for costume design, with inscription on the reverse in pen 'franzosischer waltzer quand l'amour meurt', with registration number and purple inkstamp inscriptions 'Composition Originale'; 'ERTE Roman de Tirtoff,' also on the reverse, the full sheet.
sheet 14 7/8 x 10 5/8in (37 x 27cm)
Footnotes:
Provenance
Erté (Romain de Tirtoff)
Hélène Martini, Paris

Hélène de Cressac Martini (1924–2017) was a French striptease artist turned businesswoman and nightclub owner who, at one time, owned a string of cabarets, including the Folies Bergère. She was affectionately known by Parisians as the 'Queen of the Night'. In 1954, she asked Erté to design costumes for herself and her performers. Hélène and Erté became close friends, and he left her his entire collection of his favorite works on paper, including this gouache.

'Quand l'amour meurt' was a song made popular in the 1930s by Marlene Dietrich. \

Working drawing with smudges, soft handling creases with inscription on verso.