HALSMAN, Philippe (1906-1979); EINSTEIN, Albert (1879-1955). Photograph signed ("A. Einstein 1947").

Silver gelatin print, 345 x 271mm, on a mount with "PHOT BY HALSMAN" stamp on verso, and penciled note: "A gift to Estella Katzenellenbogen." (Mild silvering, corners lightly bumped, few mounting remnants on verso).

A magnificent portrait of Einstein by Philippe Halsman, gifted to his lover, Estella Katzenellenbogen. Best known as a major collector of East Asian art as well as German and French Impressionism and Expressionism, Katzenellenbogen began a liaison with Albert Einstein in 1926. The pair were often seen attending concerts together, and she was known to have visited Einstein at his summer house in Caputh. Although baptized as a Protestant, her Jewish ancestry compelled her to flee Germany, first to Switzerland in 1936 and then to the United States in 1939. She settled in Los Angeles where she ran a branch of the Nierendorf Gallery for a brief time in mid 1940s, primarily dealing in works by Paul Klee. As this piece attests, although their affair had cooled off since the 1920s, Einstein remained in contact with her following her emigration to the United States. Provenance: Estella Katzenellenbogen (inscription) – Konrad Kellen — by descent to the consignors.