Biarritz 1924. A photograph in the painter's archives shows Théodore standing with his back to the viewer, paint brush in hand, and facing the portrait of his mother. The artist painted a number of portraits of his parents, his mother Catherine (an amateur artist) and his father Igor, as well as several self-portraits. In this painting, Théodore demonstrates his artistry. He deliberately situates himself in the ‘return to order’ movement which inspired many artists after WWI. Philippe Kaenel

When crisis hit Europe, Strawinsky did what many artists tended to do at the start of their careers which was to explore the lucrative activity of portrait painting. With the pensive, almost melancholic, red-haired woman sitting with her elbow leaning on the arm of the chair and her head gently resting in her hand, Strawinsky’s style has changed: the harder, flatter features of previous paintings have become more expressive and more graphic. Philippe Kaenel

La Femme assise could be the painter’s wife, Denise. Denise was Théodore’s favourite model and through his paintings of her one can clearly trace the artist’s stylistic evolution. In this painting, the young woman, melancholy and sensuous, is sitting on a stool in a very geometrical environment. Without abandoning figurative representation, Strawinsky does betray his admiration for Picasso, Braque and Matisse. Philippe Kaenel