Marielle Barde, Edgar Degas’ great-neice, was one of the heirs and vendors of the Degas studio drawings and attended Christie’s sale. This was the second such dispersal the family had held in these rooms of artworks from her famous great-uncle following a house move some decades ago.
Asked by ATG what she felt about the slightly uneven nature of the results, she too thought it was “difficult to read, as I think for everyone”, but she also singled out the dramatic price for the top lot. ”I did not think the Gladiator Borghese would go so high but we were told it had potential, ”she said, adding: “It was very modern in its execution.”
But she also highlighted the price for the pencil drawing of a horse on the back of a 2½ x 3¾in (6 x 10in) visiting card with Degas’ name in script to the reverse (pictured here). “Just a tiny thing but there was an emotional aspect to it – it was the carte de visite of the artist,” she said.