Original costume design by the important Russian artist Korovine, in all likelihood for an operatic character. Untitled and undated by ca. 1900-1920

Executed in ink, pencil, gouache, and silver paint on wove paper. Unsigned, but with monogrammatic handstamp to lower left corner. With annotations in ink in Russian relative to various parts of the costume. 13.125" x 8.75" (332 x 222 mm.).

Slightly worn and soiled; some edge tears and repairs; upper right corner with erasure resulting in minor paper loss. Korovine designed costumes for productions of Russian operas including Borodin's Prince Igor, Mussorgsky's Khovanshchina, and Rimsky-Korsakov's Sadko and Le Coq d'Or.

"Konstantine Korovine is one of the most famous of Russia's twentieth-century stage designers ... [He] made his debut as a theatrical painter in 1885 when he executed the sets and costumes for the production of Snegurochka at Savva Mamontov's Private Opera (after Vasnetsov's designs) and, thereafter, he emerged rapidly as an independent stage designer - decorating, according to one souce, 80 operas, 37 ballets and 17 dramas during his lifetime. Korovine brought to the Russian stage a vibrancy and richness that was lacking in the traditional Imperial theaters ... [He] felt more at ease when called upon to design operas and ballets treating of Russian history and legend such as Prince Igor, Sadko, and The Golden Cockerel, and he designed sets and costumes for such spectacles at home and abroad." Bowlt: Russian Stage Design Scenic Innovation 1900-1930 from the Collection of Mr. & Mrs. Nikita D. Lobanov-Rostovsky, pp. 175-176. Provenance: MacDougall Arts Ltd., London, auction June 9, 2011, lot 413, catalogue p. 17.