Deksels Toumanova, 1940

Titled, signed and dated in pencil on image lower margin; also titled version Petroff in Toumanova Swan Lake.

Provenance
Dupain Estate
Rex Dupain, the artist’s son Private collection, Sydney

Image size: 35.9 × 27.7 cm

Framed size: 64 x 53.6 cm

This photograph depicts Tamara Toumanova, a renowned Russian ballerina who performed with the Ballets Russes. Toumanova and Serge Lifar were photographed by Dupain performing Swan Lake in 1939–1940. The Ballets Russes toured Australia extensively between 1936 and 1940, and Dupain’s photographs from this period capture the artistic vitality of the company during its Australian seasons. This work is one of several Dupain created of the Ballets Russes, documenting both the dancers and their performances. A related photograph by Dupain, Serge Lifar and Tamara Toumanova, Ballets Russes, signed and dated 1938, has appeared at auction.