Eugeniusz Zak (1884–1926), Untitled (Family*), ca. 1922
Pencil on paper, 53.5 x 43.5 cm (frame), 22.5 x 28.5 cm (inside the mat)
Signed in the lower right corner.
Visible crease marks and scuffs.
The work comes from the collection of Lucie and Clément Pech**.
* The drawing is likely a preparatory sketch for the 1922 painting “Family.” (The painting’s current location remains unknown—its existence is attested only by a photograph in the collection of the National Museum in Warsaw, which was found among documents from the estate of the Zak Gallery in Paris; cf. the attached photograph).
**
The work comes from the collection of Lucie Pech*.
*
Clément Pech, born on June 28, 1882, was a French military officer and entrepreneur. In 1902, he began his military career and served until 1928. From 1918 to 1923, he was stationed in Częstochowa as part of an agreement between the newly formed Polish government and its French counterpart. Under the terms of this agreement, French officers assisted in establishing Polish military structures, in exchange for which they received promotions. Clément Pech, then a lieutenant, was stationed in Częstochowa. He even received the Cross of Valor from the Polish government (a photo of the ID card authorizing him to wear the decoration is included in the documentation accompanying the painting). In Częstochowa, he met Łucja (known in France as the French-style version of her name, Lucie) Henig, who came from a well-to-do Jewish family. The couple married, and in 1923, Lucie and Clément moved to France and settled in Saint-Mandé, a wealthy town near Paris.
Once in France, Lucie and Clément befriended many artists. Clément was an artist himself and frequently exhibited his works at the Paris Salons. Lucie, for her part, was not only endowed with great artistic sensitivity, but her knowledge of Polish, Russian, Ukrainian, and even Lithuanian was also a tremendous asset. Thanks to this, she easily established contacts with many artists from the École de Paris who came from Eastern Europe and often spoke French poorly. Lucie helped them, among other things, with administrative matters, translated documents and correspondence, and did small favors for them. According to the account of Frédéric Pech (Lucie and Clément’s grandson), his father André (the couple’s son) often recalled that his mother was a regular at Montparnasse, especially at the famous restaurant Le Dome, where the cream of the international artistic community active in Paris at the time gathered. One of the artists who became part of Lucie’s circle of acquaintances and friends was Eugeniusz Zak[1]. The couple maintained frequent contact with him, as evidenced by documents preserved in the family and other works by the artist found in the Pech family collection (see lots 45 and 47 in the auction).
