Figure

Physical description

[Base (object component)] Narrow rectangular wooden strip painted black with slit cut off-centre. Inscribed on reverse "Nemchinova / Matelots" and stamped with and names of maker and publisher.
[Figure] Full length two-dimensional cut-out female figure with painted features, standing on point on the right leg in arabesque, left arm curved outwards from the shoulder, the hand palm upwards, the right arm angled across the torso, the head facing towards the left, wearing a pink knee-length, short sleeved, scoop-necked dress, edged and defined in narrow red lines, with a narrow yellow apron with red zig-zags and blue grey fringe at the lower edge; the head is covered with a long blue grey scarf with yellow spots and red fringe, the right end hanging down the front to below the waist. The painting continues around the sides and the reverse is painted black. The figure stands on a narrow strip which slots into the baseplate. Wood and gouache.

Date

1920s (Made)

Artist/maker

C W Beaumont & Co (Publisher)
Aldon Studios (Maker)

Materials and Techniques

[Base (object component)] Wood and paint
[Figure] Wood and gouache

Marks and inscriptions

[Base (object component)] "SOLE PUBLISH (illeg) C. W. BEAUMONT & CO"
[Base (object component)] "EXECUTED BY THE ALDON STUDIOS"
[Base (object component)] "Nemchinova / Matelots"

Dimensions

[Base (object component)] Height: 31 mm, Width: 170 mm, Height: 4 mm slit, Width: 22 mm slit
[Figure] Height: 237 mm, Width: 115 mm left fingertip to right elbow

Object history note

The figure represents Vera Nemchinova as The Young Girl in Leonide Massine's ballet Les Matelots premiered by the Diaghilev Ballets Russes in 1925 with designs by Pedro Pruna. It was made by the Aldon Studios for the dance historian, bookseller and publisher, Cyril Beaumont, for sale in his shop at 75, Charing Cross Road. Nemchinova created the role of the Young Girl.
Beaumont had admired Caran d'Ache's satirical wood carvings of political personalities, and, about 1914, he conceived the idea of two-dimensional wooden figures of principal dancers of the Diaghilev Ballets Russes. The figures represented the dancers in costume in a typical pose from the chosen work; they were cut out from two-ply wood, hand painted and mounted on detachable stands. Each design was limited to fifty copies, originally hand-coloured by the artist and issued at 7s 6d. They sold steadily. Adrian Allinson designed nineteen figures in all and after the War, Beaumont turned to other artists and commissioned a separate artist to execute the colouring.
S.954:1/2-1982 is included in The Complete Catalogue of the Publications of C. W. Beaumont, 1928, which lists 49 figures; examples of 30 of these came to the Museum as part of the Cyril Beaumont Bequest plus 10 not in the 1928 catalogue.
The 1928 catalogue included the following description of the cut-outs (p.25):
"These figures of celebrated dancers of the Diaghileff Ballet have been issued with a view to supply the demand for something between a photograph and a statuette - something that would preserve the memory of a dancer as she appeared in a particular ballet. Each figure is based on drawings made from sittings given by the dancer herself, and from sketches made during an actual performance. The designs are by the following artists: Adrian Allinson, Eileen Mayo, Vera Willoughby, also working under the name of Vera Petrovna, Randolph Schwabe and Ethelbert White. The figures, which are of wood, average 8 3/4 inches high, and are hand-coloured with special care to ensure accuracy of costume. The black stands on whcih the figures are mounted are easily removable to afford facility in packing. The figures are priced at 7s. 6d. net."
The figure was originally numbered as S.954-1982 with an A number allocated to a duplicate copy of the figure. This was was amended in 2001 to allocate a part number to the detachable base of S.954-1982 and a new number to the duplicate figure.

Historical significance: The existence of such figures are a testimony to the popularity of the Diaghilev Ballets Russes in London, and a growing 'popular' audience who demanded memorabilia and souvenirs. As the only specialist bookseller and publisher in London, and with access to the dancers and company, Beaumont was quick to identify the market and he commissioned the figures, prints and illustrated books to fulful the demand.

Descriptive line

Cut-out wooden figure representing Vera Nemchinova as The Young Girl in Leonide Massine's ballet Les Matelots, 1920s, issued by C W Beaumont, 1920s. Wood and gouache.

Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)

Beaumont, Cyril, A Bookseller at the Ballet, C. W. Beaumont, London, 1975.
TM: Z325.B35
The Complete Catalogue of the Publications of C. W. Beaumont, C. W. Beaumont, London, 1928

Materials

Paint; Gouache; Wood

Techniques

Painting; Cut-out

Production Type

Limited edition

Collection code

T&P