Rare Lempicka Masterpiece Returns to Market After 40 Years

Christie’s is proud to present Tamara de Lempicka’s Portrait du Docteur Boucard (1928; estimate: £5,000,000-8,000,000) as a highlight of its 20th/21st Century: London Evening Sale on 5 March 2025.

Commissioned by Dr. Pierre Boucard, a renowned bacteriologist and key patron of Lempicka, the painting has remained in a private collection for 40 years and now returns to the market.

A striking fusion of scientific progress and artistic mastery, the portrait captures Boucard, inventor of the probiotic Lactéol, in a moment of dynamic brilliance. Seated against a bold Cubist backdrop, he is illuminated by a dramatic beam of light, his hands resting on scientific instruments. Lempicka’s signature polished finish and sculptural precision convey both his intellectual authority and cosmopolitan charm.

“Lempicka’s Portrait du Docteur Boucard is a striking blend of modernity and individuality, demonstrating her ability to weave personal identity with the scientific and cultural ambitions of her time. The painting radiates vitality, offering a remarkably subtle yet profound psychological study of modern man. The appearance of Portrait du Docteur Boucard at auction is made all the more timely and significant by the fact it coincides with the closing of the first major U.S. retrospective of her work, at the de Young Museum in San Francisco. This sensational exhibition – co-curated by Furio Rinaldi and Gioia Mori - will soon travel to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, opening on 9 March. It was celebrated by the global press and attended by record crowds – a seal of the ‘Lempicka-mania’ that has seized connoisseurs and amateurs in the most recent years. We are delighted to present this exceptional work in our 20th/21st Century: London Evening Sale on 5 March.” Giovanna Bertazzoni, Chairman, Christie’s Europe

Lempicka’s rapid rise in the art world saw her become one of the most sought-after portraitists of the 1920s. With Boucard’s financial support, she established a cutting-edge studio in Paris, which became a hub of creativity and high society.

This auction offers collectors a rare chance to acquire an iconic work by one of the foremost portraitists of the 20th century.