Lot Essay
The present work was inspired by the plein air experience Boldini gained whilst working with Giuseppe Abbati and Giovanni Fattori in 1867. This work is thought to date, however, to the late 1870s. Boldini had moved to Paris and had formed close friendships with a number of prominent French Impressionists, such as Edward Degas. Boldini first exhibited at the Salon du Champ-de-Mars in 1874, and his reputation in the years following was based largely upon his society portraits. Paesaggio padano, however, is of a more informal style and the artist's loose brushstrokes show the influence of Impressionism.