A true Renaissance man of post-revolution Mexico, Miguel Covarrubias is today celebrated as a leading painter, prolific illustrator and pioneering anthropologist. Born in Mexico City, he was educated at the renowned Escuela Nacional Preparatoria, Mexico’s most prestigious visual arts school. Covarrubias’ profound appreciation of each region of Mexico eventually led him to explore his nation’s diverse cultures from a humanistic perspective. This desire also propelled him to travel throughout the United States in the 1920s where he notably worked as an illustrator for Vanity Fair. Years later, he ventured into the Far East making stops in China, the Philippines, Java, Sumatra, Singapore, and perhaps most significantly Bali, where he spent a cumulative of twenty-two months exploring and documenting the local culture.

Covarrubias first arrived in Bali in 1930 on his honeymoon with Rosa Rolanda, the acclaimed dancer, fellow painter and photographer. Together they explored the island, each documenting the local people and their customs: Covarrubias with brush and ink, and Rolanda with her camera. Seven years later, their combined work became a definitive monograph titled The Island of Bali. This small but enchanting island of elegant women remained an inexhaustible theme throughout Covarrubias’ life. The force of Bali’s beauty – dance, cost.mes s, music, theater – captivated the artist and brought forth a definitive experimentation with color and painterly techniques in his work. Even in his archaeological and anthropological painting, Covarrubias’ work bears the stamp of an aesthete.

The present work, Mujer de Bali, is a stunning example of Covarrubias mature period. Demonstrating a mastery of line and, the woman’s figure is stripped of excessive details leaving only essential structural elements. The soft, roundedness of her breasts and the lush trees behind her superbly balance her stylized, geometric features with the architectural elements of the background. The white-hot pigments in the woman’s pink skirt and headdress transports the viewer—Covarrubias is not interested in the direct relationship with the visual experience but rather the enrapturing essence of her raw beauty and glamour.

Ultimately, Mujer de Bali is a test.mes nt to Covarrubias’ sincere appreciation for Bali’s unique cultural identity, all through a deferential, perceptive eye. The present work is a superb example of Covarrubias deftness in blending foreign cultural elements with his trademark graphic style, to create an enduring portrait. His Balinese works like the present are among the most acclaimed and dearest of any expatriate artists working in Bali before World War II. Today comparable works are held and exhibited by museums such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The San Antonio Museum of Art, The Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, and the Museum of Modern Art.