Studies of a reclining female nude, seen from the back

Details

Cesare Mariani (Rome 1826-1901)
Studies of a reclining female nude, seen from the back
signed in ink 'Cesare Mariani' in pen and ink (lower right)
black and white chalk on blue paper
13 x 17 in. (33 x 43.5 cm)

Provenance

Giovanni Piancastelli, Rome (1845-1926).
Reverend Father Francis Agius, Inwood, Long Island (1891-1958).
with Shepherd Gallery, New York, 1976 (Italian 19th Century Drawings and Watercolors, 1976, no. 101, ill.).
Sir John Richardson, New York.
Anonymous sale; Christie's, New York, 22 May 1997, lot 62.

Exhibited

Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art; Minneapolis Institute of Art and San Francisco, California Palace of the Legion of Honor, Italian Drawings 1780-1890, 1980, no. 67 (catalogue by R.J.M. Olson).

Lot Essay

An admired fresco painter active in 19th century Rome, Mariani became the drawing teacher of King Vittorio Emanuele III of Savoy. He favored vibrant bright blue paper for his life sketches. The present work presents studies of a female nude from three angles, as well as details of her feet. The pentimenti suggest the artist first quickly sketched the model and then later returned to rework her figure, particularly in the highly polished version at bottom.

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