On May 14, 2018, Sotheby’s set a record price of $157.2 million for Amedeo Modigliani’s Nu Couché (Sur le Côté Gauche) (1917) during the Impressionist and Modern Art Evening Sale. What is it that makes Modigliani’s work so special? Here we look to the exhibition of Modigliani’s early drawings at the Jewish Museum in New York (Modigliani Unmasked, September 15, 2017 to February 4, 2018) to shed light on the artist’s prominence.
In this video for the Jewish Museum’s exhibition, Mason Klein, Senior Curator at the Jewish Museum, sits down to discuss Modigliani’s early works, his highly recognizable style of portraying women, and how his Jewish heritage played a large role in forming his artistic identity.
From The Jewish Museum:
From September 15, 2017 – February 4, 2018, the Jewish Museum presents an exhibition of early drawings by Amedeo Modigliani—many of which are being shown for the first time in the United States. Acquired directly from the artist by Dr. Paul Alexandre, his close friend and first patron, these works illuminate Modigliani’s heritage as an Italian Sephardic Jew as pivotal to understanding his artistic output.
Video by SandenWolff Productions.