Erté, (Romain de Tirtoff) (1892-1990)

Les Poules de luxe, September 11, 1959

Les Poules de luxe, September 11, 1959, 1959
Gouache on paper heightened with gold, signed in ballpoint pen, with registration number and title in pen on verso, and blue inkstamp inscription 'Composition Originale ERTE Roman de Tirtoff', with a card of Erté's selection of color samples for costumes, taped to the back of the sheet.
sheet 14 9/16 x 10 5/8in (37 x 27cm)

Provenance
Erté (Romain de Tirtoff)
Hélène Martini, Paris

Exhibited
Andrew Weiss Gallery, Selections from the Hélène Martini Collection, September, 2016

Hélène de Cressac Martini (1924–2017) was a French striptease artist turned businesswoman and nightclub owner who, at one time, owned a string of cabarets, including the Folies Bergère. She was affectionately known by Parisians as the "Queen of the Night". In 1954, she asked Erté to design costumes for herself and her performers. Hélène and Erté became close friends, and he left her his entire collection of his most prized works on paper, including this gouache.