Alexandre Nikolaevich Benois (1870 - 1960). Watercolor. Measure 4 3/4"in H x 7"in W and 11"in H x 14"in W with frame. A painter mainly in watercolors, stage designer and art historian, Benois was born in St Petersburg of French and Italian descent. His father was Nikolai Benois, architect to the Imperial Palaces in Peterhof. In 1887 he attended a part-time course in stage design at the Academy of Arts, but was otherwise self-taught as an artist. Benois studied law at the University of St Petersburg from 1890-1894, and during that time belonged to a circle of friends, including Diaghilev, Somov and Bakst, who came together to study art. This informal circle later developed into the World of Art (Mir Iskusstva) and held exhibitions and published a journal of the same name from 1898 to 1904. Benois was influenced by the art of the eighteenth century, which he admired on his many trips throughout Europe. At home he became an influential stage designer, creating sets and costumes for Le Pavillon d'Armide 1907 and (for Diaghilev) Petrushka 1911 and Le Rossignol 1914, among others. A prolific author, he wrote several books on art and volumes of memoirs, and from 1901 to 1903 he was the editor of the periodical Khudozhestvennye sokrovishcha Rossii (Art Treasures of Russia). Benois served as curator of painting at the Hermitage from 1918 to 1925, then moved to Paris in 1926, where he continued to paint and design for the theatre. He died in Paris.