Gypsy in Reflection|Gustave Courbet |Search Collection | The National Museum of Western Art

Updated 06 March 2023

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Currently not on display

Gustave Courbet

Ornans, 1819 - La Tour-de-Peilz, 1877

Gypsy in Reflection

Date	1869
Materials and Techniques	oil on canvas
Size（cm）	50.3 x 61
Inscriptions	Signed and dated lower right: 69 / G. Courbet.
Credit Line	Matsukata Collection
Standard ref.	Fernier 663; 329
Category	Paintings
Collection Number	P.1959-0060

Courbet's images of the nude, such as those seen in Bathing Women (Musée Fabre, Montpellier), incurred public indignation with their depiction of uncouth, less than ideal figures, and they eventually led to scandal. On the other hand, his images of clothed women, with their expression of his splendid sense of realism, received wide acclaim. This work was painted in 1869, when Courbet was socially accepted and came to maturity. A young gypsy with luxuriant hair falling around her shoulders stands in deep reflection. The close-up view of the woman's torso provides an excellent example of Courbet's superb sense of sensuality, however we can also find a quiet poesy in this work. Courbet struck an aggressive posture in the face of power throughout his life, and was quite self-revealing. Courbet's sentiments are apparent in this image of a gypsy lost in thought. (Source: Masterpieces of the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo, 2009, cat. no.64)

Provenance

Etienne Baudry, 1882; sale, X...and Z..., Amsterdam, 13 November 1917, lot 138; Galerie J. Allard, Paris, stock no. 6890; purchased from the above by Kojiro Matsukata, Kobe, 1921 [see letter from Galerie J. Allard to Léonce Bénédite, dated 15 November 1921, in the Bibliothèque centrale des musées nationaux, Paris (copy in NMWA curatorial file)]; sequestered by French government, 1944; vested in French government under San Francisco Peace Treaty, 1952; transferred from French to Japanese government, 23 January 1959; entered into NMWA, April 1959.

Exhibition History

1882: Des œuvres de Gustave Courbet, École National des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 0 1882 - 0 1882, cat. no. 15
1923: Peintres français des XIXe et XXe siècles, Praha, 0 1923 - 0 1923, cat. no. 78, repr.
1924: Exposition d'art français, San Francisco, 0 1924 - 0 1925
1929: Gustave Courbet, Petit Palais, Paris, 0 1929 - 0 1929, cat. no. 128
1952: Gustave Courbet, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Besançon, 0 1952 - 0 1952, cat. no. 41
1955: Mostra di capolavori della pittura francese dell'ottocento, Palazzo delle Esposizioni, Rome, 0 February 1955 - 0 March 1955
1960: The Masterpieces of the Ex-Matsukata Collection, National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo, 14 May 1960 - 10 July 1960, cat. no. 19, repr.
1964: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Nakajima Sports Center of Hokkaido Prefecture, 22 August 1964 - 13 September 1964, cat. no. 5
1965: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Ishikawa Prefectural Museum of Art, Kanazawa, 22 September 1965 - 10 October 1965, cat. no. 4
1965: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Cultural Center of Okayama Prefecture, Okayama, 20 October 1965 - 7 November 1965, cat. no. 4
1970: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, Nagasaki Prefectural Museum, Nagasaki, 18 October 1970 - 15 November 1970, cat. no. 15
1971: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Toyama Prefectural Center, Museum of Art, Toyama, 2 October 1971 - 24 October 1971, cat. no. 15
1972: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Shinano Museum of Art of Nagano Prefecture, Nagano, 12 October 1972 - 5 November 1972, cat. no. 15
1973: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Cultural Center of Kochi Prefecture, Kochi, 28 October 1973 - 25 November 1973, cat. no. 13
1974: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Cultural Center of Fukuoka Prefecture, Fukuoka, 13 October 1974 - 10 November 1974, cat. no. 13
1974: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Saga Prefectural Museum, Saga, 16 November 1974 - 1 December 1974, cat. no. 13
1975: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Yamagata Museum, Yamagata, 1 November 1975 - 30 November 1975, cat. no. 15
1976: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Tottori Prefectural Museum, Tottori, 9 October 1976 - 7 November 1976, cat. no. 8
1976: Millet, Corot, Courbet et l' École de Barbizon, Musée Départemental d'Art Tochigi, Utsunomiya, 20 November 1976 - 24 December 1976, cat. no. 75, repr.
1977: [Tour Exhibition] The Matsukata Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, The Nara Prefectural Museum, Nara, 15 October 1977 - 13 November 1977, cat. no. 5
1978: [Tour Exhibition] Masterpieces from the National Museum of Western Art, The Art Center of Oita Prefecture, Oita, 20 December 1978 - 31 January 1979, cat. no. 6
1984: Millet, Corot, Courbet, Chiba Prefectural Museum of Art, 1 September 1984 - 10 October 1984, cat. no. 63, repr.
1989: Gustave Courbet, Bridgestone Museum of Art, 3 June 1989 - 6 August 1989, cat. no. 45, col. repr.
1996: The Crossing Visions: European and Modern Japanese Art from the Collections of The National Museum of Western Art & The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, 20 July 1996 - 8 September 1996, cat. no. 89
2000: Tanka at the National Museum of Western Art: An Encounter between Poet and Art, National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo, 25 July 2000 - 29 October 2000, cat. no. 30
2010: SHADOWS: Works from the National Museums of Art, The National Art Center, Tokyo, 8 September 2010 - 18 October 2010, cat. no. 27
2012: Bohémes: De Léonard da Vinci à Picasso, Grand Palais, Paris, 26 September 2012 - 14 January 2013, cat. no. 46, col. repr., FUNDACIÓＮ MAPFRE, Madrid, 6 February - 5 May 2013, cat no. 29
2017: [Traveling Exhibitions Presenting National Art Museum Collections, Fiscal 2017] Muse: Women before the Artists' Eyes: From the Collection of the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo, Fukushima Prefectural Museum of Art, 22 April 2017 - 2 July 2017, Akita Museum of Modern Art, 15 July-18 September, cat. no. 35

Bibliography

1929: Gronkowski, C. L'exposition Gustave Courbet au Petit Palais. Gazette des Beaux-Arts. ser. 6, tome 2, 1929, pp. 19-37, fig. 6.
1955: La Collection Matsukata, Tokyo, Asahi- Shimbun, 1955 (Japanese), no. 2, col. repr.
1959: Zusetsu Sekai Bunkashi Taikei. vol. 10, Tokyo, Kadokawa Shoten, 1959 (Japanese), p. 86, no.3, col. repr.
1959: Mizue: Tokushu Matsukata Korekushon no Kaiga. no. 651, Tokyo, Bijutsu Shuppansha, July 1959 (Japanese), , n. p. repr.
1961: Catalogue du Musée National d'Art Occidental, Tokyo. Tokyo, The National Museum of Western Art, 1961 (Préface and Catalogue Général in Japanese and French), P-84.
1971: Les cent chefs-d'œuvre du Musée National d'Art Occidental. Tokyo, The National Museum of Western Art, 1971 (Japanese), no. 15, repr.
1975: Les cent chefs-d'œuvre du Musée National d'Art Occidental. Tokyo, The National Museum of Western Art, 1975 (Japanese), no. 25, repr.
1978: Fernier, R. La vie et l'œuvre de Gustave Courbet. tome 2, Lausanne/Paris, 1978, p. 72, no. 663, repr.
1978: Masterpieces of the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo. Tokyo, The National Museum of Western Art, 1978 (Japanese, preface in Japanese and English), no. 31, repr.
1979: The National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo: Catalogue of Paintings. Tokyo, The National Museum of Western Art, 1979, no. 72, repr.
1990: The Old Matsukata Collection. Kobe City Museum, ed. Kobe, "Matsukata Korekushon Ten" Jikkoiinkai, 1990, cat. no. 489.
2006: Masterpieces of The National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo. Tokyo, The National Museum of Western Art; Tokyo, The Western Art Foundation, 2006 (Japanese, preface in Japanese and English), no. 64, col. repr.
2009: Masterpieces of The National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo. Tokyo, The National Museum of Western Art; Tokyo, The Western Art Foundation, 2009, no. 64, col. repr.
2012: Bohèmes: De Léonard da Vinci à Picasso(exh. cat.). Paris, Réunion des musées nationaux-Grand Palais, c2012, Paris: cat. no. 46, col. repr.; Madrid: cat. no. 29, col. repr.
2013: Masterpieces: The National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo. Tokyo, The Western Art Foundation, 2013 (Japanese, preface in Japanese and English), no. 79, col. repr.
2018: The Matsukata Collection: Complete Catalogue of the European Art. Kawaguchi, Masako; Jingaoka, Megumi, eds. vol. 1: Paintings, Tokyo, The National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo, 2018, cat. no. 329, col. repr.

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