λ KYRA VASLAVOVNA NIJINSKY (POLISH/HUNGARIAN 1913-1998) FEMALE DANCER PERFORMING WEARING A HEADDRESS Mixed media on canvas Signed, dated 1972 and inscribed S.F. (lower right) 127 x 81.5cm (50 x 32 in.) Provenance: Private Collection, David Scott (1928-2018), Dancer and Principal Ballet Master at The National Ballet of Canada Thence by descent to the present owner This piece is imbued with a strong legacy of dance, both from the provenance and the artist; owned by the late David Scott the Principal Ballet Master of the National Ballet of Canada from 1983, it was painted by Kyra Nijinsky, the daughter of the renowned dancer Vaslav Nijinsky. Scott was also connected in his work to the Ballet Russes, the ballet company founded by the impresario Sergei Diaghilev, and where Vaslav Nijinsky was propelled to fame. Vienna-born Kyra began her formal dance training under her aunt at the Paris Opera Ballet School. Keen to forge a career for herself and follow in her father's footsteps, she was reported to have undertaken ballet classes dressed in garments traditionally worn by her male counterparts. She had a close relationship with her father, punctuated by his mental illness, and, in an interview by Dame Margot Fonteyn available to watch on Youtube, she fondly recalls an anecdote that to her childlike self, her father was as a figure from a fairy tale. He even painted her nursery so that it resembled the landscape of a Russian fairy tale. He features heavily in many of her paintings but, as Fonteyn noticed, he is only ever presented in his ballet roles. Her treatment of bright colour and emphasis on the supple movement of the human form reflects the cultural richness of her upbringing, bringing in the "exotic, unhappy world" which she inhabited [Vena Zorina, dancer and friend]. The importance of the arts within the Nijinsky family is highlighted by the Vaslav and Romola Nijinsky foundation, created by Romola and with Tamara Nijinsky as executive director, who worked to preserve the art and writings of Romola and Vaslav. Kyra poses a striking character. She lived in Italy during World War II, where she was accused of spying by the Nazis and temporarily imprisoned. She moved to Rome in the early 1950s, working in retail, before entering the Franciscan Order as a Lay Reader. She featured as herself in a movie, titled She Dances Alone, which gives voice to her experiences in the professional world of dance. She lived a fairly solitary life after divorcing her husband, the composer Igor Markevitch, before moving to San Francisco in 1954, and this is where she produced most of her art and poetry including the present lot which was painted in 1972.
λ KYRA VASLAVOVNA NIJINSKY (POLISH/HUNGARIAN 1913-1998) FEMALE DANCER PERFORMING WEARING A HEADDRESS Mixed media on canvas Signed, dated 1972 and inscribed S.F. (lower right) 127 x 81.5cm (50 x 32 in.) Provenance: Private Collection, David Scott (1928-2018), Dancer and Principal Ballet Master at The National Ballet of Canada Thence by descent to the present owner This piece is imbued with a strong legacy of dance, both from the provenance and the artist; owned by the late David Scott the Principal Ballet Master of the National Ballet of Canada from 1983, it was painted by Kyra Nijinsky, the daughter of the renowned dancer Vaslav Nijinsky. Scott was also connected in his work to the Ballet Russes, the ballet company founded by the impresario Sergei Diaghilev, and where Vaslav Nijinsky was propelled to fame. Vienna-born Kyra began her formal dance training under her aunt at the Paris Opera Ballet School. Keen to forge a career for herself and follow in her father's footsteps, she was reported to have undertaken ballet classes dressed in garments traditionally worn by her male counterparts. She had a close relationship with her father, punctuated by his mental illness, and, in an interview by Dame Margot Fonteyn available to watch on Youtube, she fondly recalls an anecdote that to her childlike self, her father was as a figure from a fairy tale. He even painted her nursery so that it resembled the landscape of a Russian fairy tale. He features heavily in many of her paintings but, as Fonteyn noticed, he is only ever presented in his ballet roles. Her treatment of bright colour and emphasis on the supple movement of the human form reflects the cultural richness of her upbringing, bringing in the "exotic, unhappy world" which she inhabited [Vena Zorina, dancer and friend]. The importance of the arts within the Nijinsky family is highlighted by the Vaslav and Romola Nijinsky foundation, created by Romola and with Tamara Nijinsky as executive director, who worked to preserve the art and writings of Romola and Vaslav. Kyra poses a striking character. She lived in Italy during World War II, where she was accused of spying by the Nazis and temporarily imprisoned. She moved to Rome in the early 1950s, working in retail, before entering the Franciscan Order as a Lay Reader. She featured as herself in a movie, titled She Dances Alone, which gives voice to her experiences in the professional world of dance. She lived a fairly solitary life after divorcing her husband, the composer Igor Markevitch, before moving to San Francisco in 1954, and this is where she produced most of her art and poetry including the present lot which was painted in 1972.
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