Zinaida Serebriakova (1884–1967) — Portrait Of Her Daughter Katya, 1928

ZINAIDA EVGENIEVNA SEREBRYAKOVA (1884–1967)
Portrait of the Artist’s Daughter, Katya Serebryakova, 1928
Watercolour, pastel and coloured pencils on paper.
Inscribed “Paris” and dated 1928 lower left.
Upper right, an autograph dedication in Cyrillic, dated 10 August 1940:
“Милому Исаакy Сауловичу на добрую память от З. Серебряковой. 10 авг. 1940”
“To my dear Isaac Saulovich, as a keepsake, from Z. Serebryakova. 10 August 1940.”
H_36 cm W_34,5 cm (sight)

After arriving in Paris in 1924, Zinaida Serebryakova was reunited with her daughter Ekaterina—known as Katya—in 1928. Katya subsequently became one of her mother’s favourite models and her most devoted source of support throughout her years of exile in France. Serebryakova frequently portrayed Katya after her arrival in Paris, where she became a regular sitter for the artist.

This delicate study in pastel and watercolour captures Katya’s grace through the linear sensitivity and fresh colouring characteristic of Serebryakova’s work. The autograph dedication added in August 1940 bears witness to the close friendships maintained by the artist within the Russian émigré community in Paris at the beginning of the Occupation.