Transcription Transcription des fichiers de la notice - 1920-09-01, Lettre de Kojiro Matsukata à Léonce Bénédite Kojiro Matsukata 1920-09-01 chargé d'édition/chercheur Léa Saint-Raymond (PSL et IHMC) ; EMAN, Thalim (CNRS-ENS-Sorbonne nouvelle) PARIS
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63 1920-09-01 Fiche : Léa Saint-Raymond [XXX], EMAN (Thalim, CNRS-ENS-Sorbonne nouvelle). Licence Creative Commons Attribution – Partage à l’Identique 3.0 (CC BY-SA 3.0 FR) Lettre typographiée sur papier à en-tête Kawasaki Dockyard, Kobé, de Kojiro Matsukata à M. Léonce Benedite, Esqu., Musée Rodin. INHA [76, 77] Français Lettre typographiée sur papier à en-tête Kawasaki Dockyard, Kobé, de Kojiro Matsukata à M. Léonce Benedite, Esqu., Musée Rodin. INHA [76, 77]

Dear Sir,

I had the great pleasure of receiving with many thanks your most interesting letter of the 30th June last, on the 17th ult., when I took liberty of cabling you immediately, reading as follows:

Your letter June 30th received many thanks for unfailing kind endeavor stop agree and approve your letter Matsukata

I have been obliged since then to keep my rooms, according to a medical advice and I have to apologise for this delay in thanking you for your letter and confirming my telegram before this. Please rest assured, however, that my case is nothing serious; but I am taking a short rest as God-sent after my very hard working.

Before I proceed any further, I beg to thank you most sincerely for your untiring and ever unfailing kind efforts and enveavours for my Museum. Words can hardly express my gratitude for your kind services and I think I have only to wait for an opportunity to thank you personally in glorious Paris. I beg to mention once more my sincere and heartfelt gratefulness for your zealous efforts for my Museum, when you are very busy yourself and the climate is anything but pleasant during these days.

I beg to thank you warmly for your exhaustive description about the Groupe of Pygmalion and Golathee [sic]. I have instructed Mr. Hioki since not to buy it at named price, and it may be why he did not come and see you. I am very glad that I did not take it a that price after all, although it may be a good work of Rodin since you know best about them, and your appraisement should be authority about them. I should like to be informed by your next letter how the piece was appraised at the London sale.

Please proceed with the Porta de l’Enfer, when you get all estimates. I leave everything to you about the money matter, as I gladly and thankfully accept your kind advice and proposal. I am sure all art admirers will value it without question when completed, and will remember your kind endeavours about it.

I am also very thankful you have been always on lookout and bought me Aman Jean’s 2 decorative panels, M. Charlot’s 2 pictures, Emile Bernard’s 1, 2 of impressionist Lebacery, 2 of Guost [sic], who was at the point of being awarded with a medal of honour at the Salon and 2 pictures of Puois [sic] Chavannes, whose work I have not heretofore secured at all and was very anxious to obtain his specimen. You have now obtained a pearl of a gentleman collection besides another one. I can not help feeling very happy and fortunate about them. Thank you again very much. I most highly appreciate M. Guoist [sic] disposal of his still life picture for this Oriental Museum at such a nominal price. All these pictures will be valuable addition to my collection of the modern French arts. I am also very glad that you have secured M. Maurice Denis’ promise for 2 pictures.

However, dear Mr. Benedite, you are flattering me, when you say that the French artists will be grateful to have their pictures exhibited in my Museum, because I am looking upon the French artists as the instructors for the Japanese artists, who have still a great deal to learn from their Occidental brothers, and I am regarding the easy consent of the French artists to part with their good work for the sake of my Gallery, as a great honour bestowed not on me personnaly alone but on the Japanese public, which is only possible through your most esteemed mediation and influence.

I beg to mention here that I have given a letter of introduction for M. K. Shimidzu of Messrs. Yamanaka & Co., London, and I shall be much obliged to you, if you will kindly receive him when he calls on you. I am sending through his kindness a little souvenir, and shall be greatly pleased, if you will kindly accept if with my best compliments.

I sincerely wish to thank Madame and Mademoiselle Benedite for their kind resembrance, and beg to request you to convey them my best and cordial salutation. Please also remember me kindly to M. Dezarrois, when he happens again to be in your office and tell him that his beautiful magazine is being delivered monthly and that I am enjoying it very much.

With my kindest regards to you for the meanwhile, and trusting that this will find you all in the best of health and happiness.

I remain, dear Sir,

Yours most faithfully,

Kojiro Matsukata

PS : Mr. Brangwyn has written to me that he is going to hold an exhibition of his pictures, including those he has painted for my Gallery, in Paris in the coming Autumn, and I shall be very much obliged to you, if you would kindly write me the public opinion on it in details as much as possible. I hope you will not regard me imposing on your generosity again.