La tombola

Born of Austrian parents in Albano, near Rome, Eugen von Blaas looked to his native Italy for inspiration. He was a master of genre subjects from the fleeting flirtation of an amourous couple to domestic daily life. La tombola, an early work by von Blaas, portrays a typical family scene with all ages united to participate in its traditional Italian game. Tombola was originally played with beans (fagioli) or pieces of orange peel as counters to cover numbered cards. As in the modern game 'bingo', the players shouted out when they had completed a full row. It was a celebratory game played at reunions and festivities. Von Blaas deftly captures the variety of family characters; the young girl helping her little brother to count, the grandmother ensuring fair play as the enthusiastic winner cries out, the lovers distractedly casting away the counters, while the mother rocks her baby beyond and the father stands aside more interested in the refreshments.