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THÉO VAN RYSSELBERGHE (1862-1926)

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Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head. Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head. Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head. Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head. Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head. Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head. Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head. Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head. Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head. Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head.
Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe190623 x 28 1/4 in.(58.42 x 71.76 cm) oil on canvas
Provenance
M. Lacombe
Paul Gal.
Hammer Galleries, New York
Nathan Bernstein
Private Collection (purchased from above early 1990’s)
Exhibition
Brussels, Centre for Fine Arts Brussels; The Hague, Gemeentemuseum, Théo Van Rysselberghe, 2006, p. 259, illustrated p. 232
Literature
Ronald Feltkamp, Théo Van Rysselberghe. Catalogue Raisonné, Brussels, 2003, no. 1906-016, illustrated p. 358.
Brussels, Centre for Fine Arts Brussels; The Hague, Gemeentemuseum, Théo Van Rysselberghe, 2006, p. 259, illustrated p. 232.
 Price375,000
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History

Théo van Rysselberghe’s Portrait de Sylvie Lacombe, painted in 1906, is a classic masterwork by one of the most refined and consistent portrait painters of his time. The color is harmonious, the brushwork vigorous and tailored to its material task, her body and countenance true and revealing. The sitter is the daughter of his good friend, the painter Georges Lacombe, who shared a close association with Gauguin, and was a member of Les Nabis with artists Bonnard, Denis, and Vuillard, among others. We now know about Sylvie Lacombe because Van Rysselberghe is so skilled at rendering subtle facial expressions and through careful observation and attention to detail, provided insights into her inner world. He has chosen a direct gaze, her eyes to yours, an inescapable covenant between subject and viewer regardless of our physical relationship to the painting. Van Rysselberghe had largely abandoned the Pointillist technique when he painted this portrait. But he continued to apply color theory guidelines by using tints of red — pinks and mauves — against greens to create a harmonious ameliorated palette of complementary colors to which he added a strong accent to draw the eye – an intensely saturated, red bow asymmetrically laid to the side of her head.

  • Self Portrait
    Théo Van Rysselberghe, “Self-Portrait” (1920), Museum of Fine Art, Gent, Belgium
  • Théo Van Rysselberghe
    “Théo Van Rysselberghe”
  • Théo Van Rysselberghe2
    “Autoportrait au Panama, Saint Clair” (1918)

MARKET INSIGHTS

  • Market
    AMR market graph January 1976 – November 2022
  • Three of Van Rysselberghe’s top ten sales at auction occurred in the last three years.
  • Half of his top ten sales at auction occurred in the last six years.
  • Nine of his top 20 sales at auction are portraits.

Top Results at Auction

"L’Escaut en amont D’Anvers, le Soir or Voiliers sur L’Escaut" (1892), oil on canvas, 26 1/2 x 35 1/2 in., Sold at Sotheby’s London: 21 June 2017 for $10,744,500.
“L’Escaut en amont D’Anvers, le Soir or Voiliers sur L’Escaut” (1892), oil on canvas, 26 1/2 x 35 1/2 in., Sold at Sotheby’s London: 21 June 2017 for $10,744,500.
"Barques de pêche-Méditerranée" (1892), oil on canvas, 24 3/4 x 33 in., Sold at Christie’s New York: 10 July 2020 for $9,128,000.
“Barques de pêche-Méditerranée” (1892), oil on canvas, 24 3/4 x 33 in., Sold at Christie’s New York: 10 July 2020 for $9,128,000.
"Port de Cette, Les Tartanes' (1892), oil on canvas, 23 1/2 x 27 1/2 in., Sold at Sotheby’s New York: 14 November 2017 for $7,227,800.
“Port de Cette, Les Tartanes’ (1892), oil on canvas, 23 1/2 x 27 1/2 in., Sold at Sotheby’s New York: 14 November 2017 for $7,227,800.
"À Thuin ou La Partie de Tennis" (1889), oil on canvas, 21 ½ x 26 1/2 in., Sold at Christie’s Paris: 04 June 2020 for $5,847,765.
“À Thuin ou La Partie de Tennis” (1889), oil on canvas, 21 ½ x 26 1/2 in., Sold at Christie’s Paris: 04 June 2020 for $5,847,765.
"Le canal en Flandre par temps triste" (1894), oil on canvas, 23 ½ x 31 ½ in., Sold at Christie’s London: 21 June 2011 for $4,247,500.
“Le canal en Flandre par temps triste” (1894), oil on canvas, 23 ½ x 31 ½ in., Sold at Christie’s London: 21 June 2011 for $4,247,500.

Comparable Paintings Sold at Auction

"Jeune femme au bord de la grève" (1901), oil on canvas, 40 x 32 in., Sold at Sotheby’s London: 06 February 2008 for $1,470,500.
“Jeune femme au bord de la grève” (1901), oil on canvas, 40 x 32 in., Sold at Sotheby’s London: 06 February 2008 for $1,470,500.
  • A significant result at auction for a female portrait.
  • Both works use the artist’s signature, pointillist approach.
"Le Ruban Écarlate" (1906), oil on canvas, 45 ½ x 35 in., Sold at Sotheby’s New York: 14November, 2016 for $1,452,500.
“Le Ruban Écarlate” (1906), oil on canvas, 45 ½ x 35 in., Sold at Sotheby’s New York: 14November, 2016 for $1,452,500.
  • A nude, a rarity at auction for the artist.
  • Both works are excellent examples of Post-Impressionism.
"Le Docteur Auguste Weber" (1892-1893), oil on canvas, 39 x 32 1/2 in., Sold at Christie’s London: 27 February 2018 for $1,380,000.
“Le Docteur Auguste Weber” (1892-1893), oil on canvas, 39 x 32 1/2 in., Sold at Christie’s London: 27 February 2018 for $1,380,000.
  • A significant price paid for a portrait.
  • This sale demonstrates the deep interest level in Rysselberghe portraiture.
"Jeune femme en robe verte" (1893), oil on canvas, 32 x 24 in., Sold at Christie’s London: 02February 2010 for $1,227,000.
“Jeune femme en robe verte” (1893), oil on canvas, 32 x 24 in., Sold at Christie’s London: 02February 2010 for $1,227,000.

  • A comparable portrait, executed in the pointillist style Rysselbeghe is best known for developing, along with Signac and Seurat.

"Jeune fille au chapeau de paille- Elisabeth Van Rysselberghe" (1901), oil on canvas, 32 x 28 in., Sold at Christie’s Paris: 01 December 2006 for $1,017,000.
“Jeune fille au chapeau de paille- Elisabeth Van Rysselberghe” (1901), oil on canvas, 32 x 28 in., Sold at Christie’s Paris: 01 December 2006 for $1,017,000.
  • This portrait would bring a significantly higher amount if put to auction in 2023.
  • A highly desirable portrait, extensively documented and exhibited.
  • Comparable quality to our portraits.

Paintings in Museum Collections

"Etude de femme nue" (1913), oil on canvas, 26 x 39 in., The Musée d’Orsay, Paris
“Etude de femme nue” (1913), oil on canvas, 26 x 39 in., The Musée d’Orsay, Paris
"Little Denise" (Denise Maréchal, later Madame Georges Béart) (1889), oil on canvas, 41 x 23 3/4 in., The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
“Little Denise” (Denise Maréchal, later Madame Georges Béart) (1889), oil on canvas, 41 x 23 3/4 in., The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
"Coastal Scene" (1892), oil on canvas, 20 x 24 in., The National Gallery, London
“Coastal Scene” (1892), oil on canvas, 20 x 24 in., The National Gallery, London
"Self-Portrait" (1888-89), pastel and crayon on paper, 13 x 10 in., The Museum of Modern Art, New York
“Self-Portrait” (1888-89), pastel and crayon on paper, 13 x 10 in., The Museum of Modern Art, New York
“Portait de Marguerite Van Mons” (1886), oil on canvas, 35 x 27 3/4 in., Museum of Fine Art, Gent, Belgium
“Portait de Marguerite Van Mons” (1886), oil on canvas, 35 x 27 3/4 in., Museum of Fine Art, Gent, Belgium

Image Gallery

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Authentication

Cat rais

Ronald Feltkamp, Théo Van Rysselberghe. Catalogue Raisonné, Brussels, 2003, no. 1906-016, illustrated p. 358.

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