George Bellows (1882-1925)
The Violinist Leila Kalman
signed 'Geo Bellows' (lower left) and inscribed with title and signed again (on the reverse, prior to lining)
oil on canvas
44 x 34 3/8 in. (111.8 x 87.3 cm.)
Painted in 1924.
Footnotes:
Provenance
Emma Louise (née Story) Bellows (1884-1959), New York, wife of the artist, by descent from the artist, 1925.
H.V. Allison & Co., New York.
Mrs. Jacob H. Rand, New York, 1946.
Emma Louise (née Story) Bellows (1884-1959), New York, wife of the artist, 1948.
Estate of the above, 1959.
H.V. Allison & Co., New York.
Campanile Galleries, Chicago, 1967.
Far Gallery, New York.
Mr. and Mrs. William Paul, Long Island, New York.
ACA Heritage Gallery, Inc., New York.
Private collection, New York.
Grand Central Art Galleries, Inc., New York.
Haig (Haigaz) Tashjian (1913-2000) and Adrienne Mary (née Chankalian) Tashjian (1921-1991), Leonia, New Jersey, by 1982.
The Sterling Regal Collection, New York, by 1988.
Michelman Fine Art, New York.
Private collection, Franklin, Michigan, (probably) acquired from the above.
By descent to the present owners from the above, 2023.

Exhibited
Woodstock, New York, Woodstock Art Association, September 6-October 15, 1924.
The Art Institute of Chicago, Special Exhibition of Paintings by George Bellows, Leon Kroll, Eugene F. Savage, Walter Ufer, Paul Bartlett, Edgar S. Cameron, H. Amiard Oberteuffer, and George Oberteuffer, December 23, 1924-January 25, 1925, n.p., no. 1. (as Portrait of the Violinist, Lelia Kalman)
New York, Durand-Ruel Galleries, Exhibition of Paintings by George Bellows, February 2-14, 1925, n.p., no. 5. (as Portrait of the Violinist, Leila Kalman)
New York, H.V. Allison & Co., May 2-27, 1967, no. 12. (as The Violinist)
Southampton, New York, Parrish Art Museum, American Realist and Impressionist Paintings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Haig Tashjian, April 18-June 6, 1982, pp. 39, 50, fig. 23, illustrated, and elsewhere. (as Leila Kalman, The Violinist)
Greenville, South Carolina, Greenville County Museum of Art, American Realist and Impressionist Paintings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Haig Tashjian, March 10-April 22, 1984. (as Leila Kalman, The Violinist)
New York, Grand Central Art Galleries, Inc., William Merritt Chase/Robert Henri: Between Two American Masters, October 24-November 30, 1985. (as Leila Kalman, The Violinist)

Literature
Artist's Record Book C, p. 14. (as Portrait of the Violinist Leila Kalman)
'Young Group Rules Woodstock Exhibit: Final Display of the Season is a Demonstration of the New Generation's Ability to 'Carry On,'' The Art News, New York, September 13, 1924, vol. XXII, no. 40, p. 1. (as Portrait of a Violinist)
R. Flint, 'Bellows and His Art,' International Studio, New York, May 1925, vol. LXXXI, no. 336, pp. 83, 86, illustrated. (as The Violinist)
E.S. Bellows, The Paintings of George Bellows, New York, 1929, n.p., no. 133, illustrated. (as The Violinist)
C.H. Morgan, George Bellows: Painter of America, New York, 1965, pp. 275, 291, 380. (as The Violinist)
The Southampton Press, April 29, 1982, illustrated.
P. Braff, 'From the Studio,' The East Hampton Star, May 13, 1982, sec. 2, p. 6, illustrated.

The present work is to be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the paintings of George Bellows being prepared by Glenn C. Peck. An online version of the catalogue is available at www.hvallison.com.

George Bellows painted The Violinist Leila Kalman in 1924 in preparation for his first one-man exhibition at Durand-Ruel in New York in February 1925, becoming the first American to receive such an honor from the esteemed French gallery. He was introduced to the Hungarian-born violinist Leila Kalman through a mutual acquaintance who was interested in promoting her career after hearing her play. Bellows likely began working on her portrait in the spring of 1924 and invited Kalman for sittings at his New York studio for several weeks. However, he did not finish the painting until later that summer when he took it with him to Woodstock, New York. The Violinist Leila Kalman would be one of Bellows' last works, as the artist died in early January 1925, a month before his show at Durand-Ruel was to open. Despite this, the exhibition proceeded on schedule with enormous success. Ten of the twelve canvases exhibited were painted in 1924 and among The Violinist Leila Kalman, included well known works, such as Lady Jean (1924, Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut, 1961.18.7), Dempsey and Firpo (1924, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 31.95), and The Picnic (1924, The Peabody Art Collection, Maryland, MSA SC 4680-10-0003).

In The Violinist Leila Kalman, Bellows' celebrated and distinctive technical prowess as a portrait painter is on full display, as he subordinates the physical attributes of his sitter into highly stylized forms and shapes. The resulting image is one of smooth, flawless surfaces, such as those of her hair, hands, folds of her dress, and instrument she holds firmly, that all elegantly and uniformly reflect light. Bellows creates added uniformity in his composition through the visual relationship formed between the sensual, crisp lines of the bodice of Kalman's dress and the alluring curves of her violin. Bellows paints Kalman's delicate skin using shades of muted rose and chose cool yellow pigments for her dress. The intricate black lace shawl that she wears contrasts against the yellow of her dress and serves as an instrument for the artist to prevent an overemphasis on the rose tints in her skin. The electric purple highlights of the drapery behind Kalman contrast dramatically with the muted tones that Bellows has used to describe his sitter. Kalman's demeanor appears unfocused and distant, directing the viewers' attention toward the stylistic elements of the composition rather than her identity. Bellows has rendered her hands sensitively and with personality that indicates her strength and intelligence as a gifted musician.