Marevna worked alongside the Cubist greats but never received the same acknowledgement or praise as her contemporaries.


The renowned patron and art dealer Léopold Zborowski told Marevna that he objected to the name ‘Marevna’ and suggested she alter her name to her father’s ‘Stebel’ as “it sounds alright, and no one will know that you’re a woman. Dealers do not have confidence in women painters. A woman will paint for a while and then she’ll stop- she’ll fall in love, or marry, or have a child, or divorce.”1


For Marevna, being a woman meant that she was never considered in the same context as her male counterparts. Picasso once said ‘we will make you a greater artist than Marie Laurencin’2


dared to see her in the same context as a male painter, despite the fact Marevna worked beside Braque, Picasso, Diego and others in the studio debating ideology and technique. Her early Cubist constructions illustrate her own engagement, adaptation, and intervention into the movement.


Her contribution and advancement was mostly ignored at the time, and she is often omitted from art history. She did, however, have a few important advocates. The founder of the Petit Palais in Genvea, Oscar Ghez, described Marevna as one of the first ‘women to adopt difficult cubist techniques’.3


This


letter from Matisse is another example of an important figure in twentieth-century art recognising her talent and innovation.


but he never


78


Marie Vorobieff Marevna, Russian 1892-1984


Chaïm Soutine and Léopold Zborowski;


charcoal and black pen, 21 x 27cm (unframed)


Note: Zborowski, was a Polish poet, writer and art dealer, Zborowski and his wife Anna were contemporaries with Parisian artists such as Chaim Soutine, André Derain and Amedeo Modigliani, who painted Zborowski’s portrait.


Literature: For a similar example of this work see, David Phillips, ‘Life with the painters of La Ruche- Marevna; featuring painting from the Gallery at Althelhampton’, 2007 p.97.


£100 - 150* 78


1Marevna, Life with the Painters of La Ruche,1972. p.22


2Oscar Ghez, founding president of Petit Palais Museum Geneva, from a transcript from Marevna’s archive 3Oscar Ghez, founding president of Petit Palais Museum Geneva, from a transcript from Marevna’s archive


38 www.roseberys.co.uk


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142  |  Page 143  |  Page 144  |  Page 145  |  Page 146  |  Page 147  |  Page 148