Design for the Set of the Ballet 'Narcisse', premiered at the Théâtre de Monte Carlo, 1911

Léon Bakst Russian, born present day Belarus

1911

Not on view

Bakst created this impressive décor for the one-act ballet ‘Narcisse’. It centers around the Greek mythological figure of Narcissus, who falls in love with his own reflection in a pool of water. The story is set at the shrine of Pomona, a mythological goddess associated with the abundance of nature. The latter aspect comes through clearly in the rich green setting Bakst imagined for the ballet, which echoes the sensibilities of the Art Nouveau style and was highly praised by contemporaries. In a review of the performance, he was described as ‘a really able tree-draughtsman with a fondness for heavy plume-like foliage’ and ‘a landscape painter very sensitive to the lines of hills and the building of trees, a colourist without fear and a remarkable manipulator of water-colour’.

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

Title: Design for the Set of the Ballet 'Narcisse', premiered at the Théâtre de Monte Carlo, 1911
Artist: Léon Bakst (Russian (born present day Belarus), Hrodna (Grodno) 1866–1924 Paris)
Date: 1911
Medium: Watercolor, gouache, and charcoal
Dimensions: Sheet: 29 × 53 1/2 in. (73.7 × 135.9 cm)
Classifications: Drawings, Ornament & Architecture
Credit Line: Bequest of Sallie Blumenthal, 2015
Object Number: 2015.787.16
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

By Léon Bakst

In the same medium

From the same time and place

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Costume Design for a Courtier, likely for the Ballet 'La Belle au Bois Dormant' (Sleeping Beauty), premiered at the Alhambra Theatre in London, 1921, Léon Bakst Russian, born present day Belarus, Watercolor, graphite, gold paint — Costume Design for a Courtier, likely for the Ballet 'La Belle au Bois Dormant' (Sleeping Beauty), premiered at the Alhambra Theatre in London, 1921
Léon Bakst
ca. 1921

Costume Design for a Valet, likely for the Ballet 'Les Papillons', premiered at the Théâtre de Monte-Carlo, 1914, Léon Bakst Russian, born present day Belarus, Gouache and graphite — Costume Design for a Valet, likely for the Ballet 'Les Papillons', premiered at the Théâtre de Monte-Carlo, 1914
Léon Bakst
ca. 1914

Landscape, possibly a detail of the Set Design for the Ballet 'Narcisse', premiered at the Théâtre de Monte Carlo, 1911, Léon Bakst Russian, born present day Belarus, Gouache and graphite — Landscape, possibly a detail of the Set Design for the Ballet 'Narcisse', premiered at the Théâtre de Monte Carlo, 1911
Léon Bakst
[1911]

Costume Design for a Eunuch in Scheherazade, Léon Bakst Russian, born present day Belarus, Gouache and graphite, heightened with gold paint — Costume Design for a Eunuch in Scheherazade
Léon Bakst
1912

Costume Design for Captain Faloppa in "The Good-Humored Ladies" (Le Donne de Buon Umore), premiered in Rome, April 12, 1917, Léon Bakst , and /or workshop Russian, born present day Belarus, Watercolor, graphite, touches of metallic powder paint — Costume Design for Captain Faloppa in "The Good-Humored Ladies" (Le Donne de Buon Umore), premiered in Rome, April 12, 1917
Léon Bakst
1917

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