# Pavel Tchelitchew artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/pavel-tchelitchew/
Profile generated: 2026-05-02T13:58:19.838Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1898-09-21
- Death date: 1957-07-31
- Nationality: Russian, American
- Movements: Surrealism, Neo-Romanticism
- Common media: Oil painting, Watercolor, Gouache, Pastel, Graphic works / prints, Set and costume design (theater and ballet)

## About Pavel Tchelitchew

Pavel Tchelitchew (1898–1957) was a Russian-born painter, set designer, and costume designer who became a significant figure in twentieth-century surrealist and neo-romantic art. Born in Kaluga, Russia, he fled after the Bolshevik Revolution and lived in Berlin and Paris before settling in the United States, where he was naturalized in 1952. Tchelitchew is best known for his haunting figurative paintings that explore human anatomy, metamorphosis, and interior vision—most notably Hide-and-Seek (Cache-Cache, 1940–42), now in the Museum of Modern Art's permanent collection. In addition to his easel paintings, he designed sets and costumes for leading ballet and theater productions in Europe and America. His work is held by major institutions including MoMA, Tate, and is extensively documented by the RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History.

## Common works and media

Collectors and appraisers most commonly encounter Tchelitchew's oil on canvas figurative paintings, often depicting distorted or transparent human forms. Also prevalent are works on paper in gouache, watercolor, and pastel, as well as ink drawings and lithographic prints. His costume and stage designs for ballet and theater productions circulate in both the fine-art and performance-design markets. Portrait work forms another recognizable category within his output.

## Market and appraisal context

Tchelitchew's works appear regularly at auction across Post-War and Contemporary Art and Impressionist and Modern Art sales. Oil paintings from his major surrealist period of the 1930s and 1940s tend to be the most sought-after, while his gouaches, watercolors, pastels, and graphic works are more accessible price points. Theater and costume designs represent a niche collecting segment with dedicated buyers. Provenance linking a work to notable exhibitions or prominent collections can meaningfully affect value. As with many émigré artists, careful attention to attribution is important—Tchelitchew's name appears in multiple transliterations across catalogue entries.

## Appraisily data basis

This Appraisily artist page combines identity research from the Library of Congress, VIAF, RKD, MoMA, and Tate with public auction records, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lot data when available. Biographical details are cross-referenced against multiple authority files. Market observations are based on documented auction-house results and institutional holdings rather than estimates or projections.

## Sources

- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n50008439
- VIAF (OCLC): https://viaf.org/viaf/14991184/
- RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/76661
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/5821
- Tate: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/pavel-tchelitchew-2029
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2361741
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pavel_Tchelitchew