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Lot Essay
Vittorio Corcos was a naturally gifted artist and at the age of sixteen was admitted directly into the second year at Florence’s Academia di Belle Arti. Two years later, with monies raised by the people of his hometown, the young artist moved on to Naples, where he studied with Domenico Morelli. In 1880, the purchase of one of Corcos’ pictures by King Umberto I provided him with the necessary funds to make the essential journey to Paris.
Upon arriving in Paris, Corcos immediately introduced himself to Giuseppe de Nittis, who along with Giovanni Boldini, was the most successful Italian artist to relocate in Paris. At de Nittis’ salon, the young Corcos was introduced to Degas, Manet and Caillebotte along with many other leading artistic figures of fin-de-siècle Paris.
De Nittis was also instrumental in introducing Corcos to the Maison Goupil. Corcos signed a contract with the French dealers which relieved him of all financial concerns, and he continued to supply Goupil with pictures even after his return to Italy.
Corcos became increasingly in demand as a portrait painter, but it is his works where he takes a role as a flâneur which offer a fascinating insight into his observations of contemporary life. In these works he chronicles leisure pursuits of the affluent, such as displays of tourism on promenades around the seaside. In Le galop d’essai Corcos turns his attention to the horse races. As with his seaside terrace paintings, the subject of the painting is the people to be found here and their interactions. A fashionable dress, elegant hats and subtle yet shining jewellery dominate the scene. Like a boat beyond a shoreline, the horse and rider are but a detail in the distance.
More and more attention is being paid to Vittorio Corcos, due in part to the 2014 exhibition at the Palazzo Zabarella in Padua, Corcos: Dreams of the Belle Epoque. The show included more than 100 works by the artist, 27 of which were shown publicly for the first time. Eighteen works in the show had not been exhibited for more than half a century.
Upon arriving in Paris, Corcos immediately introduced himself to Giuseppe de Nittis, who along with Giovanni Boldini, was the most successful Italian artist to relocate in Paris. At de Nittis’ salon, the young Corcos was introduced to Degas, Manet and Caillebotte along with many other leading artistic figures of fin-de-siècle Paris.
De Nittis was also instrumental in introducing Corcos to the Maison Goupil. Corcos signed a contract with the French dealers which relieved him of all financial concerns, and he continued to supply Goupil with pictures even after his return to Italy.
Corcos became increasingly in demand as a portrait painter, but it is his works where he takes a role as a flâneur which offer a fascinating insight into his observations of contemporary life. In these works he chronicles leisure pursuits of the affluent, such as displays of tourism on promenades around the seaside. In Le galop d’essai Corcos turns his attention to the horse races. As with his seaside terrace paintings, the subject of the painting is the people to be found here and their interactions. A fashionable dress, elegant hats and subtle yet shining jewellery dominate the scene. Like a boat beyond a shoreline, the horse and rider are but a detail in the distance.
More and more attention is being paid to Vittorio Corcos, due in part to the 2014 exhibition at the Palazzo Zabarella in Padua, Corcos: Dreams of the Belle Epoque. The show included more than 100 works by the artist, 27 of which were shown publicly for the first time. Eighteen works in the show had not been exhibited for more than half a century.