Auction introduction: Following the success of its first edition held in April 2023 of Art Impressionniste et Moderne: Oeuvres choisies, Christie’s Paris is thrilled to present a highly curated sale of around 25 works by some of the most sought-after artists coming from prestigious private collections. Some of these works are complete discoveries such as the top lot of the sale, an intrinsically Fauve painting by Andre Derain painted near Collioure in 1905, in which he portrays his friends Matisse and Etienne Terrus, the Catalan artist who greeted them when both artists visited Collioure during that pivotal summer of 1905. With its electric palette, the freshness and spontaneity of the thick brushstrokes, Matisse and Terrus announces the famous 1905 Salon d’Automne that would take place a couple of months later, during which Derain, Matisse, Vlaminck and others were described as ‘wild beasts’, ultimately giving birth to Fauvism. Another exciting revelation is the portrait of a child by Berthe Morisot, the reverse of which has been recently discovered and depicts Morisot’s copy of her portrait made by Edouard Manet. Other highlights include a highly sophisticated private collection of Impressionist and Modern Art, that celebrates the 150th anniversary of the first Impressionist exhibition held in April 1874. This collection includes key works by some of the greatest masters of the end of the 19th and early 20th century: Pissarro, Sisley, Renoir, Matisse, Bonnard and Vuillard. Christie’s is also proud to include three Matisse works from the collection of a member of the Matisse family, featuring an early ink self-portrait, an early painting dating from the turn of the century and a rare sculpture. Finally, a strikingly animated 1960s portrait by Picasso, a semi abstract and highly gestural Miro painting and two charming whimsical compositions by Marc Chagall are a few of the examples from the modern art section of the sale.