Young Girl Shelling Legumes

GOTTLIEB, LEOPOLD

1932

Charcoal and pastels on paper. Signed and dated by artist in ink lower right. Corners tipped to mat. Framed

Benezit, Vol. 4, p.359; C. Roth, Jewish Art (1961) pp.808-809

Younger brother of the famed Maurycy Gottlieb, Leopold (1883-1934), born four years after his siblings’ premature death, was similarly attracted to the arts. Listed as an outstanding figure in the history of Polish contemporary art, Leopold was also well known in France and a distinguished painter of the School of Paris. Influenced by the Paris Impressionists, he rapidly acquired a delicate and sophisticated awareness of contemporary trends from his contacts with the artists of Western Europe. He taught for some years at the Bezalel School of Art, Jerusalem. The influence of the Paris Impressionists, is clear in this charming drawing. Classical in its avoidance of all unneccessary detail, the composition is especially reminiscent of the chalk and pastel drawings of Edouard Degas. Gottlieb provides just enough detail to suggest to the observer the wider context of the scene. The young girl wearing an apron, sits with a bowl in her lap and a kettle by her side, intent on her work. In the background through an open doorway, the figure of a woman leaning over a sink is viewed - perhaps the young girls’ mother. Gottlieb’s great gift for interpreting the natural appearance of his models is clearly apparent in this composition. The gentle incline of the young girls’ head and the way her feet slip from her shoes, imply her unselfconscious childish innocence