Seated Nude (Eva Révai) (Primary Title)
Seated Nude (Former Title)
Man Ray, American, 1890 - 1976 (Artist)
This Solarized photograph is not considered a portrait since the artist wrote the title “Seated Nude” on the verso. However, the model can be identified as Éva Révai (1901–2004), who moved to Paris from her home town of Budapest with her mother, the Hungarian photographer Ilka Révai (1873–1945), in the mid-1920s. Thanks to her mother’s connections and friendships with other artists, Éva Révai modeled for a number of modernist photographers over the next decade, including Nora Dumas, Ergy Landau, Man Ray, and André Kértesz, with whom she pursued a brief love affair around 1927. This photograph, in which the contours of Révai’s body are surrounded by a neon-like halo, has long been considered one of the artist’s finest Solarized compositions. “The technique enabled me to get away from photography, to get away from banality,” Man Ray explained in a 1964 interview. “Here was a chance to produce a photograph that would not look like a photograph.”
"Collecting Photographs: Selected Acquisitions Since 1980," Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, 17 January - 12 March 1989 (checklist #22)
[1] In the Christie's catalogue, 19th and 20th Century Photographs, New York, Lot 284, p. 99 (illus.), a previous owner is listed as “Property of a Midwest Collector.” The name, location and ownership dates of this collector is currently unknown. There is an invoice from Christie’s in the file, dated November 11, 1986.
[2] Information in VMFA Curatorial and Registration files.
Some object records are not complete and do not reflect VMFA's full and current knowledge. VMFA makes routine updates as records are reviewed and enhanced.