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Galerie Vollard Archive

Welcome to the most extensive resource for the study and comprehension of the records of Galerie Ambroise Vollard. The Vollard Stock Book Project Database 1894-1940 research project is ongoing and is expected to be largely complete in 2022.

Ambroise Vollard (b.1866 – d.1939) was one of the most important French art dealers of contemporary art of his age. He was an instrumental figure in the support of then unknown artists that have since become some of the most significant figures in French Impressionist & Modern Art.

Researchers discover there is a lot of myth surrounding the archive records of Ambroise Vollard and his sale and promotion of the artists he chose to sell.

Over the years parts of Vollard's archives have found their way into various institutions; Musee d'Orsay, The Getty, Wildenstein Plattner Institute, The National Gallery of Canada, National Archives Kew, Kunstmuseum Winterthur and also scholar archives. The various institutions have some records privately held and others are open to study. All suffer from different cataloguing systems put in place by those who are not studying all of the information contextually or holistically. Therefore, folders and boxes have been, duplicated, mislabelled or the contents inaccurately assumed for decades. 'Spot' checks performed by professional provenance researchers are pretty much impossible to conduct with any level of certainty. When people have tried, they often only have access to limited information and cannot 'see' the larger context.

Therefore, to straighten out the art historical record and for the protection of collectors artworks the database pulls together as many of these records into one location and studies every part, to see exactly what records exist and which do not. Due to the scattered nature of these records the only way to really 'see' what was recorded was to build a large database / recalibrated stock book that contains the following information:

Every recorded comment on artists and artworks. This encompassed tracking and deciphering:

Every Inventory Book number referenced Every Stock Book number and Label referenced Every identifiable artwork title and dimension Every incoming amount of money related to artworks Every outgoing amount of money related to artworks Every recorded shipment to clients Every insurance related document Every recorded artwork loaned to exhibitions and the exhibition catalogues Every artwork 'shared / co-owned' by Vollard and his business partners. Artworks returned to the Galerie following Vollard's sudden death in 1939. Any photographic references (photo plate negatives) on the artworks. Galerie Vollard's Exhibition Catalogues Any mention of artworks in Vollard's Will and Estate Any mention of confiscated artworks in inventories from 1940

The database records the data in chronological order to identify the missing fragments of time. The database records where each bit of information recorded came from in the original documentation and code links each bit of archival material used. Sometimes data is used from 3 or 4 archival sources to build a complete 'database entry'.

The aim of the Stock Book Project Database 1894-1940 is to build the most comprehensive resource for the study of Vollard's stock.

The database resource is privately funded and built so researchers, curators, art collectors & art lawyers do not have to rely on 'expert connoisseurship' and can obtain an impartial, clear, concise and timely answers to difficult questions about the provenance of artworks Vollard traded.

Vollard Stock Book Project Database 1894-1940 Format

The Database / Stock Book is formatted in the following way and includes the source material used to find the information and research notes:

Stock / Label no.

Date of input

Provenance

Artist

Artwork title

Buying price

Date of release

Buying client

Price paid

Original material source code

Notes

Artists Researched

Galerie Vollard's artists that are of major focus are:

Paul Cezanne Edgar Degas Paul Gauguin Camille Pissarro Albert Marquet Othon Frieze Henri Matisse

Toulouse-Lautrec Berthe Morizot Odilon Redon Pierre Auguste Renoir Pablo Picasso Edward Manet Andre Derain

Vincent Van Gogh Claude Monet Georges Rouault Pierre Bonnard Maurice de Vlaminck Henri Manguin Alfred Sisley

Findings So Far:

The years the Database covers are: September 1893 – 1940, the data also includes details about stock that was confiscated, sold and exhibited by Vollard's immediate network and family members after 1940.

Critical changes in understanding the Administration records of Galerie Vollard

Vollard's 'stock books' 'A,' 'B,' 'C,' 'X,' 'W,' are a confusing set of often duplicated inventory lists and stock/label numbers which represent stock present at the Galerie or in Vollard's personal collection during different years.

This is complicated further when Vollard re-inventoried old stock; this means there are repetitions of stock over the years with different stock/label numbers or inventory numbers applied. Our database tracks the re-inventoried artworks and as a result has revealed the following critical facts:

The Stock books collectively have now been assessed more contextually, specifically critical observations have been made related to the 3 different formats of Vollard Gallery Labels.

Stock books ('A', 'B' and 'C') show most clearly the perforated label edges along the left hand side of the left hand pages where the labels applied to the back of artworks were detached. Often these perforated edges are difficult to see, especially on photocopied records such as Stock Book 'B' held at Musee d'Orsay and Stock Book 'W' held at the Wildenstein Plattner Institute are the examples where this occurs.

Stock Book 'A', 'B' represent the earliest Stock Books that still exist, both are identically formatted, even the numbering within both books cover numbers 3301 – 5250. These books appear to be standard issue from the commercial printer 'Fabrique de Registres & Impressions, Ferdinand Levy, 58 Rue Laffitte, Paris', the four digit numbering and their accompanying labels are not formatted specifically for Galerie A Vollard, and do not carry any trace of gallery name. branding, they are always formatted as 'X,XXX'.

• From a practical administrative point of view one is left wondering why on earth would someone buy two identically numbered record books? Why not a series of Stock books that ran 0001 – 1351 and 1352 – 3300 then one that runs 3301 - 5250?
• Also to note is that not all of the entry lines have been used in both Stock Books, so they appear to be used in a frustratingly non-systematic manner.

Stock Book(s) 'W' held by the Wildenstein Plattner Institute is a rebound photocopy of the original material. It is presently unclear where the original printed book was produced. The numbers are formatted 'XXXX' and cover numbers 1 – 5745, it is not clear if the numbers extend beyond no. 5745 because there is no back cover shown. Each page has 10 lines, the entry lines are on single pages not spread over double pages (as found in stock books 'A' 'B' and 'C'). From gathering labels from artwork owners, we can confirm that this Stock Book appears to have also had detachable labels like the other stock books, but this is not clear from the way the photocopy is bound.

Stock Books produced by Fortin & Cie that cover a period from before 1911 – c. 1939 show 18 lines of recorded artworks with a branded label fomat 'Galerie A. Vollard' followed by a 4 digit number. These Stock Books have obviously been especially commissioned by and printed for 'Galerie A Vollard'.

Building of a chronological sequence from the identifiable stock/label numbers from the Vollard Archive materials is one of the major elements of the database. Over time the data is slowly building up a picture of the stock/label numbers from the Stock Books that have not been located.

When the available data was consolidated it appears that the archive materials cover the following years: Sept.1893 – 1939

The artwork records that are prefixed with: 'c. no.' / 'c.fo no.' / 'T.V.no.' and show artworks from Renoir, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Pissarro, and Monet...recorded in the period from c. April 1895 – c.March 1896. After this period no prefixes appear before the artworks. It is presently unclear why these prefixes are used, further study is ongoing.

'Stock Book A' - This Stock list covers numbers 3301 – 5250 and years circa. July 1899-1907. There are many instances according to scholar John Rewald where Vollard re-inventoried stock from Stock Book A into Stock Book B, we have yet to test the data patterns in this regard to test Rewald's findings.

'Stock Book B' This Stock list covers numbers 3301 – 5250 and years possibly from 13 March 1903 and definitely Before April 22 1904 – to beyond March 1906.

'Stock Book X' (according to John Rewald)) is not an actual 'Stock Book' the source material for this is a combination of material from AV 4.13 recs MS421 and AV 5 recs MS421 (Orsay) or 'Vollard Shipping Records 1912-1923' (Getty) therefore these numbers are not complete, they do not reflect the whole stock / label numbers, instead only the numbers recorded on the 'shipping' and 'agenda' notes. Numbering starts at no. 5000

The Stock Book Project Database 1893-1940 has identified these numbers listed by John Rewald within his 'Stock Book 'X' and additional numbers listed in the 5000's as stock / label numbers:

The first number obtained is no. 5000 and the last stock / label number current identified is a Van Gogh no. 5532.

All numbers in the 5000's identified in the archive materials and in John Rewald's notes were checked against the other inventories ('A' and 'W') that include inventory numbers 5000 – 5250 (A) and 5000 – 5745 (W) to insure and prove Stock / Label numbers could be identified correctly.

'Stock Book C' – Is a Stock Book, titled 'Tableaux 7016-9031'. This stock book covers label numbers 7016–9031 and has been mislabelled c.1918– ca. 1922 (ref: Wildenstein Plattner Institute). However; the only data related to input / output dates associated with this stock book that can be found in the archive materials is: Before September 10 1917 (attributed to Label no 7151 and other earlier label numbers that were on loan to a Kunsthaus Zurich Exhibition that opened to the public on 5 October 1917 and label 7415 attributed before a 20 June 1919 sales date). A letter proposing the Kunsthaus Zurich exhibition by Charles Montag was positively replied to by Kunsthaus Zurich on 10 November 1916, so therefore it is likely that the Stock Book 'C' began as early as the beginning of 1917. There is currently no evidence in the archive material that support the 'ca. 1922' end date, however the material is still under analysis.

The fact that Vollard appears to have commissioned his administrative stationary precisely and that this stock book is not filled in completely could indicate that the stock book was his last stock book likely in use up to his death in July 22 1939. This also appears to be probable given that the artworks recorded in the inventories total 8,952 inclusive of a large number of duplicate artworks (circa. 400) and the last label number used in this 'Stock Book C' is no. 8491.

Stock Book in 2 Volumes ('W') from January 1st 1922 inventory numbers 1 – 3000 and 1922- Jan 5th 1938 inventory numbers 3001 – 5745(previously labelled as 'Stock Book 'W (Rewald)). This stock book shows artworks considered to be in/from the collection of Vollard, all provenance shows 'my collection', most have a the common input date of 1 January 1922. Further analysis shows that this inventory list appears to be a 'summary' of stock that was left over after sales recorded before 1922. Both of these 'W' inventories that span from January 1st 1922 – 1938 show a total of 5,745 artworks recorded. The data shows that Vollard acquired these artworks from sources (in the majority of cases) well before January 1st 1922.

Missing / Unlocated Genuine Stock Books

The Stock Book Project Database 1893-1940 has been gathering Vollard archive materials from all the Institutions they are known to exist in: Musee d'Orsay, The Wildenstein Plattner Institute, The Getty Institute, The National Archives Washington and complemented these records with other archive records related to dealers Vollard worked with, exhibitions Vollard lend works to and collectors he sold works to. These were soured from Archives Nationale Paris, Kunsthaus Zurich, Kunsthalle Basel, ZADIK, Galerie Paul Rosenberg, Kunstmuseum Winterthur, INHA, Paul Cassirer Archives, Foundation Merzbacher, SIK-ISEA and other private archives . The archive materials were then digitalised and all findings catalogued into the Stock Book Project Database 1893-1940 . Other Galerie Branded Stock Books that cover stock /label numbers 1-7015 have yet to be located. However, there are a signifiant number of stock /label numbers that have been identified between 1-7015 and entered into the database. Working with private collectors, it has been proven that 'Galerie A Vollard' branded labels from earlier stock books do exist. For example; Galerie branded label / stock no. 4457 being inventoried before 1911, and no. 5373 inventoried during 1911.

Determining the Dates of Stock Books 1893-1939

It is currently unclear exactly when and how the Stock Books containing 'Branded' Stock numbers and labels between 1 – 7015 were dated after they began from September 1893 when Vollard started his gallery. The 'Branded' labels are formatted 'Galerie A. Vollard XXXX.' The available archive information does not allow concrete confirmations, data collection and comparison is currently ongoing.

Stock Book C does not contain any dates of acquisition recorded next to the labels, dates of acquisition are recorded intermittently within Stock Books and on other administrative records. However, current findings by Stock Book Project Database 1893-1940 with regard to the entry dates of artworks included in Stock Book 'C' reveal that:

Stock Book C, shows Stock / label numbers between 7016-9031 . This Stock Book begun before September 10 1917, likely circa. January 1917. (This differs from the date period of c. 1918-1922 allocated to the stock book by the Wildenstein Plattner Institute). Data analysis to understand if this stock book concluded its entries up to 31st December 1921 or if there is any over lap with the Inventory 'W' that was started 1st January 1922 is ongoing.

(unlocated) Stock Book showing Stock / label numbers: 5000 – 7015 – the data currently analysed shows that this book likely dates from beginning of 1911 – December 1916

(unlocated) Stock Book(s) showing Stock / label numbers: 1 – 4999 – the data currently analysed shows that this book likely dates from September 1893 (when the Galerie Vollard began) to the end of 1910.

The breath of this data suggests that up to 3 Stock Books could be 'missing / unlocated'.

Determining the Contents of Missing / Unlocated Stock Books 1893 - 1917

The data also reveals that despite Vollard's Stock Books being labelled by media 'tableaux / paintings'; it is clear that drawings, watercolours and pastels are also included in Stock Book C. The unlocated Stock Books 1893-1917 also contain mixed media artworks. The database findings show: stock label no. 147 is a painting, no 221 is a watercolour, no. 495 is a drawing, no. 3379 is a painting, 3384 is a watercolour, no. 4457 is a painting, no. 5163 is a drawing , no. 5373 is a pastel.

Determining the Contents of Stock Books – Rebuilding Data On Labels

The project continues to seek assistance from Institutional and Private collections that hold artworks with their branded 'Galerie A Vollard' or unbranded 'X,XXX / XXXX' labels intact. The project is very focussed on looking for any labels between numbers 1-7015 that are branded 'Galerie A Vollard'. Label details provided can be then checked against the data already collected which will further enhance the knowledge about Vollard's chronological acquisitions and sales between 1893 - 1917.

The following 3 distinct formats of Galerie Vollard Labels have so far been recovered:

• 'X,XXX' linked to Stock Book 'A' & 'B' from 1893
• 'XXXX' linked to Stock Book 'W' from 1922
• 'Galerie A Vollard XXXX' linked to Stock Books from before 1908 – c. 1939.

Contact the project if you have a Vollard Label

Vollard's Dealer Network

Vollard's close network of dealers and agents are revealed in the database that shows when and how artworks were traded. Our Internal Archive also has records from many of Vollard's network of dealers and therefore can compare Vollard's records directly with his business partners for example:

Heinrich & Justin Thannhauser – Moderne Galerie Thannhauser (Munich, Berlin, Luzern & New York) Jos Hessel, (Paris) Paul & Leonce Rosenberg - Galerie Rosenberg (Paris & New York) Jacques Seligmann – Galerie Seligmann (Paris & New York) Galerie Durand-Ruel (Paris) Galerie Bernheim-Jeune (Paris) Alex Reid & Lefevre (London) Galerie Bignou (Paris & New York) Charles & Max Montag (Paris & Winterthur)

The Stock Book Project Database 1893-1940 also incorporates data we have gathered and continue to gather from different Institutional and Arts Club Archives that had received correspondence from Vollard. This largely relates to loans of artworks for exhibitions, artworks incoming directly from Artists, sales invoices to private collectors and exchanges / part-share sales of artworks with his partner Dealers and Agents.

The works of Cezanne that passed through Vollard's hands have been completely logged into the database. We were able to clarify when identified artworks had sold and to whom that had previously not been proven by the Cezanne Catalogue Raisonne researchers.

The Vollard Stock Book Project Database 1893-1940 continues to grow as we encounter more letters and documents related to his business found in the institutions and other dealer records we continue to recover from the pre-1940 period. However, we are confident we have so far gathered together the most data held on Galerie Vollard in one location.

DOES YOUR ARTWORK HAVE A LABEL.... We wish to thank the private and institutional collections that have made the Vollard Project aware of any labels that are attached to the back of artworks they hold. We continue to welcome contact from any owners of artworks that still have 'Galerie A Vollard' labels intact. Gathering information on these labels assists greatly in reconstructing the chronology of the acquisition of Vollard's stock esp. between 1893-1917. Contact The Vollard Project Directly to share details of your labels.

For further information on The Galerie Vollard Stock Book Project Database 1893-1940 please contact us with your enquiry. The database enables the firm to be able to offer collectors for the first time fully contextualised reporting on archive materials linked to artworks traded by Galerie Vollard.