MAURICE DENIS (1870 - 1943) Study for the Annunciation (San Francesco del Deserto), circa 1923 Pastel, signed lower left Height 66cm Width 47 cm Provenance : - Former collection of Doctor E.M. (probably a gift from the artist or one of his children, in gratitude for a surgical operation) - By descent to current owner Exhibition: Maurice Denis, Galerie Druet, Paris, March 10 - 21, 1924, N°76 or 77 We would like to thank Fabienne STAHL, who confirmed the authenticity of this work and kindly indicated that it appeared in the Maurice Denis archives under N°923.1001. Annunciation (San Francesco del Deserto), 1923 (D.R) This sheet is a preparatory study for the Annunciation (San Francesco del Deserto), 1923, but it is above all a study of the Virgin, the real subject of this pastel. In it, Maurice Denis fixes a reclining figure, hands clasped in prayer at the neck, wearing a long, softly woven dress that hints at the body. All attention is focused on the figure's inner attitude and contemplation, giving it a simple, humble yet monumental presence. In the lower left-hand corner, a small sketch of the composition already reveals the arches, cypress trees and general layout of the scene; above all, it shows that, in the initial project, the angel was on the left and the Virgin on the right, before the artist reversed their positions in the painted version. The sheet thus combines an isolated study of one of the two figures with a first draft of the composition, and is thus a precious testimony to the development of the painting and the genesis of the work.The catalog for the Maurice Denis exhibition at the Musée d'Orsay in 2006/2007 states the following about this Annunciation: Denis, who discovered Venice with Marthe in 1907, wrote of San Francesco del Deserto in his diary: "The most serious cypresses I have seen; a beautiful little Franciscan convent, quite alone in the lagoon, surrounded by an earthen embankment and a cypress garden" (T.I, p.70). When he returned there with Lisbeth in April 1922, the place inspired him to paint an Annunciation. In his sketchbook, a watercolor drawing of the church porch, with the swallow in its nest, is followed by a quick pencil sketch of the angel kneeling before the Virgin. This was followed by research in the studio, with models posing to clarify attitudes and drapery. A study of the Virgin in charcoal and a painted variant of the central part show that the painter hesitates over the place and position of the figures. Presented by the children of Bernard and Marguerite-Marie NIZERY (+).