384 - Martha, Act I (Chicago Opera), 1925

"Martha, Act I (Chicago Opera)" is a gouache on paper painting created by Erté in 1923. The artwork is signed 'Erté' center right and stamped with Erté's Villa Excelsior block stamp and 'Composition originale' verso. Annotated in fountain pen verso 'No 659 Martha I acte Pour Madame Ganna Walska I - X - 1923'. The artwork ships framed in a custom closed-corner frame and has a framed size of 19.5 x 15.625".

Erté’s "Martha, Act I (Chicago Opera), 1925" is a refined costume gouache from one of the strongest areas of the artist’s original work: his designs for the stage. Created in gouache on paper and signed at center right, the work presents a single poised figure in a costume conceived for "Martha," Friedrich von Flotow’s 19th-century romantic comic opera. The verso inscriptions—title, numbering, Erté’s block stamp, “composition originale,” and “Pour Madame Ganna Walska I-X-1925”—give the work valuable context as a documented theatrical design associated with one of Erté’s important early patrons.

The connection to Ganna Walska is central to the gouache’s significance. Walska was a glamorous and ambitious opera figure whose productions placed great emphasis on visual splendor, and Erté created a number of striking costumes for her. His designs for Walska are especially compelling because they sit at the intersection of performance, fashion, and celebrity culture in the 1920s. In Martha, that world is distilled into a compact but fully realized image.

The figure is elegant and controlled, standing against a clean background that keeps attention on the costume itself. Her vivid red coiffure provides a sharp point of drama, while the cool blue gown and gray, fur-trimmed outer garment create a sophisticated contrast. The dress is richly patterned with fan-like motifs and jewel-toned highlights, giving the impression of embroidery, structure, and stage-worthy luxury. The gray train sweeps behind her with a soft, fluid rhythm, extending the silhouette and suggesting movement beyond the still pose.

Although the design references historical costume, Erté does not treat it as literal period reconstruction. He transforms operatic dress through his own visual language: elongated proportions, stylized hands, precise contour, flattened decorative pattern, and a carefully balanced palette. The result is both character study and fashion fantasy. It gives the performer a visual identity before she sings a note.

Within the market for Erté gouaches, "Martha" is well positioned. It is from 1925, a key period for his Art Deco theatrical style, and its scale is consistent with the intimate design format in which he typically worked. Its appeal is not based on spectacle alone, but on elegance, provenance, and specificity: a named opera, an identified act, a documented Walska connection, and a beautifully resolved costume. It is a sophisticated example of Erté’s ability to turn stage design into an enduring work of art.