Miniature portrait of a Galician-Jewish man.

Oil on panel. Signed, upper right: "Isidor Kaufmann, Wien".

Miniature portrait of an elderly Galician-Jewish man, depicted with a thin beard, eyeglasses, a top hat, and slightly worn clothing. Cecil (Bezalel) Roth describes Kaufmann as an artist who "made a great career as the chronicler of Galician Jewish types and customs" (Jewish Art, 1961, p. 619). Kaufmann’s oeuvre features numerous figures similar to the subject of the present portrait, particularly in his depictions of daily life scenes of Jewish characters known to him from the Shtetl. These were much requested in the Viennese Market during the 1900s.

Never before at auction.

For Kaufmann's genre paintings featuring similar character types, see: The Chess Players (Die Schachspieler, 1886; Natter, p. 179); The Chess Player (Der Schachspieler; Sotheby's, New York, October 23, 2007, Lot 62); At the Notary (Sotheby's, London, June 21, 1989, Lot 274).

Wood panel: 9X7.6 cm. Original gilt frame: 29X27.5 cm.

Reference:

• G. Tobias Natter, Rabbiner, Bocher, Talmudschüler, Bilder des Wiener Malers, Isidor Kaufmann, 1853-1921, Vienna: 1995.

• Cecil Roth, Jewish Art: an Illustrated History, New York, Toronto and London: McGraw-Hill, 1961.

Provenance:

1. Oscar and Regina Gruss Collection, New York.

2. Heirs of the above.

Certified by the Art Loss Register (ALR); certificate enclosed.

Isidor Kaufmann (1853-1921)

One of the foremost Jewish painters of the 19th century, Isidor Kaufmann was born in Arad, then part of Hungary, and was active in Vienna. Initially working as a clerk, he pursued private studies in painting before enrolling at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. Kaufmann embarked on extensive journeys through Jewish communities in Poland, Galicia, and Ukraine, capturing the impressions of these encounters in his works. His most significant paintings include portraits of Jewish men and women, Rabbis and Yeshiva students, genre scenes depicting daily life in the shtetls of Eastern Europe, and evocative renderings of synagogues and study halls, characterized by meticulous detail and a vivid palette.

The Oscar and Regina Gruss Collection

In 1939, Oscar and Regina Gruss fled their hometown of Lvov (then part of Poland, now in Ukraine), narrowly escaping the Holocaust, and eventually settling in the United States. In the years following the war, they devoted themselves to assembling one of the finest collections of Jewish ceremonial art in the USA, with a particular focus on silverwork and 19th-century Jewish paintings.

Their collection featured masterpieces by celebrated artists such as Isidor Kaufmann, Moritz Daniel Oppenheim, and Solomon Alexander Hart. Many of these works were generously donated to The Jewish Museum, New York, while others remained within the family. The paintings in this catalogue are being offered at auction for the first time.

For additional items from the collection of Oscar and Regina Gruss in the present catalogue, see lot nos. 133, 144, 147, 153, 154, 204 and 205.