Tamara de Lempicka
Lempicka fabricated her own biography so thoroughly that her real birth name was only recently uncovered in a Russian[7] archive. She was born Tamara Rosa Hurwitz-Gorska in Warsaw in 1898[7]. Her parents had converted from Judaism to Christianity in 1891. She reinvented herself continuously for the rest of her life.
Biography
In December 1917[7], the Cheka arrested her husband Tadeusz Lempicki in the night, suspected of connections to the Tsar's secret police. She searched the prisons for him and reportedly secured his release by offering favours to the Swedish consul. They fled through Copenhagen and London to Paris. She initially signed her paintings Lempitzky, the masculine form of the name, to be taken more seriously. Critics praised the work, thinking a man had made it.
She moved in the lesbian and bisexual salons of 1920s Paris, a circle that included Vita Sackville-West and Colette. Her female portraits carry both the painter's gaze and the lover's. Perspective (The Two Girlfriends), shown at the 1923[7] Salon d'Automne, was among the earliest. Her style blended a late, polished Cubism with neoclassical form, influenced by Ingres but drenched in the glamour and geometry of Art Deco[7].
In 1929[7], she painted herself for the cover of the German fashion magazine Die Dame: Autoportrait (Tamara in a Green Bugatti). The car in the painting was a Bugatti. Her actual car was a yellow Renault.
She divorced Tadeusz in 1928[7] and married Baron Raoul Kuffner, an Austro-Hungarian art collector. They moved to America in 1939 to escape the war. She became a favourite of the Hollywood set. After the war, her work drifted into obscurity. The Art Deco[7] revival brought her back: a 1972 retrospective at the Galerie du Luxembourg restored her reputation. A stage play called Tamara ran in Los Angeles for eleven years, from 1984 to 1995, the longest-running play in the city's history. Madonna became a major collector. She died in 1980[7].
Timeline
- 1898Born Tamara Gorska in Warsaw, Poland, to a wealthy family.
- 1918At 20, fled revolutionary Russia, travelling via Copenhagen and London to Paris.
- 1929At 31, painted Self-Portrait in the Green Bugatti in Paris, an Art Deco icon of female independence.
- 1939At 41, emigrated to the United States as war threatened Europe, settling in Beverly Hills.
- 1980Died aged 82 in Cuernavaca, Mexico. Her ashes were scattered over the crater of Mount Popocatepetl.
Notable Works
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Where to See Tamara de Lempicka
4 museums worldwide.
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6 worksMusée National d'Art Moderne
Centre Pompidou-Metz, France
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4 worksNantes Museum of Arts
Richebourg-Saint-Clément, France
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1 worksMetropolitan Museum of Art
New York City, United States
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1 worksNational Museum in Kraków
Kraków, Poland
Tamara de Lempicka prints
Hand-finished archival prints from Tamara de Lempicka's body of work.
My Portrait (Self-Portrait in the Green Bugatti) - Tamara de Lempicka
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Calla Lillies - Tamara de Lempicka
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Portrait of Marjorie Ferry - Tamara de Lempicka
From £28.00
Young Lady with Crossed Arms - Tamara de Lempicka
From £28.00
Portrait of Dr. Boucard - Tamara de Lempicka
From £28.00
Saint Moritz - Tamara de Lempicka
From £28.00
Related Artists
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See all Tamara de Lempicka prints →Frequently Asked Questions
How did tamara de lempicka die?
Tamara de Lempicka died in 1980[7] at the age of 82.Is tamara de lempicka art deco?
Yes, Tamara de Lempicka epitomised Art Deco[7]. Her style conveyed the glamour of the Jazz Age, using smooth brushwork, angular contours, and sculptural tones.Tamara de lempicka art movement?
Tamara de Lempicka is associated with the Art Deco[7] movement. She epitomised the movement in her paintings.What was tamara de lempicka art style?
Tamara de Lempicka's style blended a late, polished Cubism with neoclassical form, influenced by Ingres. Her style was drenched in the glamour and geometry of Art Deco[7].When did tamara de lempicka paint?
Tamara de Lempicka painted in 1923[7], when her painting Perspective (The Two Girlfriends) was shown at the Salon d'Automne. In 1929, she painted Autoportrait (Tamara in a Green Bugatti) for the cover of Die Dame magazine.Where did tamara de lempicka live?
Tamara de Lempicka lived in Warsaw, Paris, and America. She fled to Paris and then moved to America in 1939[7] to escape the war.Tamara de lempicka facts?
Tamara de Lempicka's birth name was Tamara Rosa Hurwitz-Gorska, and she was born in Warsaw in 1898[7]. She secured her husband's release from prison by offering favours to the Swedish consul.What is tamara de lempicka known for?
Tamara de Lempicka is known for epitomising Art Deco[7]. Her distinctive painting style conveyed the glamour of the Jazz Age, using smooth brushwork, angular contours, and sculptural tones.
Sources
Editorial draws on the following primary and tertiary references for Tamara de Lempicka.
- [1] museum National Museum in Kraków Used for: museum holdings.
- [2] museum MuMa Museum of modern art André Malraux Used for: museum holdings.
- [3] museum Nantes Museum of Arts Used for: museum holdings.
- [4] museum Musée départemental de l'Oise Used for: museum holdings.
- [5] museum Metropolitan Museum of Art Used for: museum holdings.
- [6] museum Musée National d'Art Moderne Used for: museum holdings.
- [7] wikipedia Wikipedia: Tamara de Lempicka Used for: biography, birth dates, death dates, identifiers, movement attribution, nationality.
- [8] book Susie Hodge, Artistic Circles Used for: biography, museum holdings, stylistic analysis.
- [9] book guggenheim-francispicabia00camf Used for: stylistic analysis.
- [10] book guggenheim-frantisekkupka00kupk Used for: stylistic analysis.
- [11] book guggenheim-piecesfm00solo Used for: stylistic analysis.
Editorial overseen by Solis Prints. Sources verified 2026-07-02. Click a source for details, or hover over [N] in the page above to preview.
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