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Randall J. Slavinwww.winnslavin.comRandall J. Slavin Q: Can you tell us more about The Pierre Argillet Collection and its signifi,cance in Dal%u00ed%u2019s body of work?A: Pierre Argillet was a French art collector and publisher. He%u2019s perhaps best known for his work with Dal%u00ed and published editions for other great surrealists. Dal%u00ed and Argillet were friends for more than 30 years. Between 1960 and 1974, they published nearly two hundred etching editions together. Their collaboration ended when Dal%u00ed decided he wanted to do lithograph editions, but Argillet refused due to the inferior quality of lithographs.Argillet, however, was not remarkably talented as a merchant and realized only limited sales of the etching editions during his lifetime. Most of the etchings were stored away until the turn of the 21st century when Argillet%u2019s heirs reintroduced the work to the market. As such, the Pierre Argillet collection is, perhaps, the only remaining primary source of lifetime Dal%u00ed etchings. The etchings we represent come directly from the Argillet estate with no intervening owners. Q: What challenges and rewards come with representing such an iconic artist?A: It can be challenging to represent an artist who was very prolific during his lifetime and who also released many etchings and lithographs through numerous publishers. Since most of the work available today is after-market and there are few remaining primary sources, the market tends to be somewhat unpredictable.Like this: Authenticity is always an issue with a notable deceased artist. Dal%u00ed%u2019s erratic behavior and inconsistent business dealings during his lifetime make it of particular importance. We%u2019re fortunate to be representing the Pierre Argillet Collection specifically. Argillet was one of Dal%u00ed%u2019s most reputable publishers, and the collection is exclusively composed of editions from copperplate etchings, which are very difficult to counterfeit. The etchings that we sell come directly from the inventory of the Argillet estate, which makes their provenance unimpeachable. As to the rewards, it%u2019s gratifying to be able to represent such an iconic artist and to be able to explore firsthand how the artwork influenced artists and the art world today.Q: You recently held a private event showcasing The Pierre Argillet Collection. What inspired you to bring this collection to Winn Slavin Fine Art?A: We%u2019ve been working with the Argillet estate since we opened our first retail gallery in 2017. The exhibition we did this year was the third we%u2019ve done with the Argillet Collection. One was a museum exhibition titled %u201cSurrealism Revisited,%u201d which opened at the Shanghai Museum of Modern Art in 2019. We%u2019re reprising that exhibition this September at the Reno Tahoe International Artshow. The exhibition we did earlier this year at our Rodeo Drive gallery was rare. In addition to over one hundred etchings, we exhibited six Dal%u00ed originals, some of which hadn%u2019t been previously shown to the public.MOST MAGAZINE - ISSUE 50 51