HALIL BEY MUSSA YASSUL (RUSSIAN 1896-1931).'A Turkish beauty'.Signed and dated 'Halil b. Mussa Yassul/1932' lower right.Oil on paper mounted on board.70 x 49.5cm.Provenance: Christie's, London, British and Continental Pictures & Works on Paper, 17th April 2003, Lot 789.Halil Bey Mussa Yassul was born in Dagestan, bordering the Caspian Sea. Initially self-taught, he drew inspiration from the region’s dramatic landscape, and the richly decorated carpets and highly embellished weaponry produced locally. He mounted a successful exhibition of his work in 1917 and enrolled in art school in Saratov, Russia. He moved to Munich in 1921, where he continued his education and established himself as an artist. For further information including illustrations of other works by Mussa Yassul see: ‘Der Maler Halil Bey Mussa Yassul’ in Jugend, Munich 1938, no. 14, pp. 211-214.