Post War & Contemporary Art 
22 May 2024
Arshile Gorky, Untitled (Standing Female Figure) - Image 1 of 3
Arshile Gorky, Untitled (Standing Female Figure) - Image 2 of 3
Arshile Gorky, Untitled (Standing Female Figure) - Image 3 of 3
Post War & Contemporary Art 
Arshile Gorky, Untitled (Standing Female Figure) - Image 1 of 3
Arshile Gorky, Untitled (Standing Female Figure) - Image 2 of 3
Arshile Gorky, Untitled (Standing Female Figure) - Image 3 of 3
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Arshile Gorky 1904–1948

Untitled (Standing Female Figure)

c. 1931
ink on paper 13½ h × 11¾ w in (34 × 30 cm)
estimate: $12,000–18,000
result: $17,640
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Signed to verso ‘Gorky’.
provenance: The Artist | Acquired from the previous in 1932, Julien Levy Gallery, New York | Bernard and Rebecca "Becky" Reis, New York | Thence by descent to Barbara (Reis) Poe Levee, Los Angeles | Thence by descent
literature: Costello D1510

This work will ship from Los Angeles, California.

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After living in Paris during the late 1920s, Julien Levy (1906–1981) returned to his birthplace of New York, opening a small gallery in 1931 at 602 Madison Avenue, where he specialized in Surrealist art and photography. Gorky came to the gallery frequently in the hopes of obtaining a show, offering examples of his work to Levy, such as this drawing, which the dealer purchased.  Although Levy acquired several works and lent Gorky money, he did not offer him a contract at the time, finding his work too derivative. When first showing Levy a sample portfolio in the winter of 1932, Gorky reportedly exclaimed, “I was with Cézanne for a long time, and now naturally I am with Picasso...” Levy, in turn, responded that he would show his work, “someday, when you are with Gorky....”

Gorky was offered a formal contract with Levy's gallery in December 1944. His debut solo show opened in March 1945.

— Eileen Costello, the Arshile Gorky Catalogue Raisonné

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