Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art

About this Work

The Lithuanian-born sculptor Jacques Lipchitz met the Italian-born sculptor Amedeo Modigliani when Lipchitz moved to Paris in 1909. They connected in the bohemian neighborhood of Montparnasse. Perhaps it was their shared Jewish heritage or outside status that brought them together. This simple—if somewhat hesitant—contour drawing captures Lipchitz’s distinctive profile and some of his calculating, suspicious nature as well.
In 1916, Lipchitz commissioned his impoverished friend to paint a double portrait of him with his new wife, the Russian poet Berthe Kitrosser. Unfortunately, even with Lipchitz’s aid, Modigliani died destitute at the age of thirty-five having had only one solo show and few sales. In 2015, one of Modigliani’s nudes fetched the second highest price ever paid for a painting.