Bidspirit auction | A DIMITRI BOUCHENE, RUSSIAN ”CYRANO

A DIMITRI BOUCHENE, RUSSIAN ”CYRANO DE BERGERAC” SET DESIGN - Dimitri Bouchene (1893-1993). Set Design for ”Cyrano de Bergerac”. The Opera with music by Franco Alfano was run at La Scala in Milan in 1954. Gouache on paper 38 by 59.5 cm., signed and inscribed. This design is for Act III shows the camp outside Arras where Cristian dies. This artwork was previously sold at MacDougall’s on March 30 2012 for 2000 GBP. This work comes from the artist’s Paris studio. Dimitri Bouchene is an artist of the so-called ”Silver Age” of Russian culture. A scion of an aristocratic family he was one of the World of Art movement. At the age of 18 Dimitri met Anna Akhmatova in the summer of 1911. The two shared a warm friendship that passed the test of time and distance. Many years later the artist was one of those who arranged a reception of Akhmatova in Paris. There was also a deep affinity between Bouchene and Zinaida Serebriakova. During the difficult time Serebriakova endured after the Revolution, she drew strength and inspiration from her relationship with Dimitri Bouchene. There is a beautiful portrait of Dimitri Bouchene dated 1922 by Serebriakova. Dimitri Bouchene's career belonged to theatre and to the generation that personified the Golden Age of Russian theatre design in Paris. Dimitri emigrated from Russia in 1925 and became a member of the Parisian beau monde. His friends were Anna Pavlova, Alexander Benois, Nina Ricci, Jane Patou. Alexander Benois greatly assisted him in establishing a career in France. It is possible that Benois augured the rise and success of young Artists. The present lot is a part of the collection of Dimitri Bouchene. Dimensions: 14 3/4 x 23 3/8 in., (37 x 59 cm.) Condition: Perfect.