Giovanni Segantini “Spring in the Alps”
The J. Paul Getty Museum announced this week that they have acquired a major work by the 19th-century Italian artist Giovanni Segantini. The painting was originally commissioned by Toby Rosenthal on behalf of Jacob Stern (1851-1927) – the San Francisco collector and son of David Stern (co-owner and founder of Levi Strauss & Co.).
Spring in the Alps (1897) is a monumental alpine landscape near the town of Soglio, Switzerland, that the artist first exhibited at the 7th Munich Secession in 1897. After making some changes to the work, it was finally sent to San Francisco in 1899 and became the centerpiece of Stern’s collection. According to the Getty’s press release, the painting was so well known even then, that the painting’s rescue from the 1906 earthquake and fire was reported in the national press. Upon Stern’s death in 1927, and in accordance with his wishes, Spring in the Alps was loaned by his heirs to the California Palace of the Legion of Honor. There it stayed on public view for more than 70 years. In 1999 the estate of Stern’s heir sold the picture at auction in New York [where it made over $9.5M].
This new purchase will go on display in the museum’s West Pavillion on February 12th.