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Lot Essay
Ulisse Caputo began his artistic training at the Istituto di Belle Arti in Naples under Stanislao Lista and Domenico Morelli. After a fruitful cooperation with the artist Gaetano Esposito, Caputo moved to Paris at the turn of the century. It was in the Ville Lumière that the artist specialised in the depiction of charming interior scenes, portraying members of the flamboyant French society. However, his most accomplished and famous works are the ones depicting theatre interiors and concerts, emphasising the artist’s passion for music.
In Paris Caputo befriended other Italian painters working in Paris such as Pietro Scopetta, Arnaldo De Lisio and the more famous Giovanni Boldini and Federico Zandomeneghi. The encounter with Richard Miller, the American Impressionist artist, highly influenced Caputo’s handling of the colour. The palette used became brighter and shifted to more vibrant tones.
In the beginning his work charmed Europe; his paintings appeared in the 1907 and 1909 Venice Biennale, he won a medal in the 1909 Salon of the Société des Artistes Français, and a gold medal in the 1910 Munich exhibition. He rapidly secured important commissions thanks to his strong reputation in the art market scene of the time. In the 1920’s he went on to exhibit more internationally in North and South America. Between 1924 and 1930 he travelled to Morocco joining at first a French military campaign conducted by the General Louis Hubert Lyautey, then working for the Governor, the Count de Chambrun.
In the present painting the viewer is placed directly in the stalls of the theatre, taking in the movement of the orchestra, the drama at the centre-stage, and the frisson of the swordfight in the upstage right, all under the backdrop of a clear crisp night sky. The colourful scene is characterized by quick and rich brushstrokes, emphasising the movement of the depiction.
Music and theatre can be considered familiar passions as the artist’s father was a set designer and administrator of the Teatro Verdi in Salerno and this probably influenced the artist in his love for the subjects. Caputo always showed a great devotion to music, which is the central theme of some of his most famous works: Sinfonia (Paris, Musee d’Orsay) and Una Prova (Lima, Museo de Arte Italiano).
In a letter sent to the art critic Vittorio Pica dated 30 March 1915, the artist stated:
'…I love music, every kind of music, without exceptions… I love 'seeing’ the music, I have to be able to follow with my eyes the harmonic movements of the violin bows, and the theatrical and nervous gesture of the conductor…As you can understand half of the pleasure I am getting from music is purely visual…’
(translated from Italian, M. Picone Petrusa (ed.), Un 'Italiano di Parigi’ Ulisse Caputo: Salerno 1872- Parigi 1848, exhibition catalogue (Palazzo S. Agostino, 6 December 1997-6 January 1998) Salerno, 1997, pp. 15-16).
In Paris Caputo befriended other Italian painters working in Paris such as Pietro Scopetta, Arnaldo De Lisio and the more famous Giovanni Boldini and Federico Zandomeneghi. The encounter with Richard Miller, the American Impressionist artist, highly influenced Caputo’s handling of the colour. The palette used became brighter and shifted to more vibrant tones.
In the beginning his work charmed Europe; his paintings appeared in the 1907 and 1909 Venice Biennale, he won a medal in the 1909 Salon of the Société des Artistes Français, and a gold medal in the 1910 Munich exhibition. He rapidly secured important commissions thanks to his strong reputation in the art market scene of the time. In the 1920’s he went on to exhibit more internationally in North and South America. Between 1924 and 1930 he travelled to Morocco joining at first a French military campaign conducted by the General Louis Hubert Lyautey, then working for the Governor, the Count de Chambrun.
In the present painting the viewer is placed directly in the stalls of the theatre, taking in the movement of the orchestra, the drama at the centre-stage, and the frisson of the swordfight in the upstage right, all under the backdrop of a clear crisp night sky. The colourful scene is characterized by quick and rich brushstrokes, emphasising the movement of the depiction.
Music and theatre can be considered familiar passions as the artist’s father was a set designer and administrator of the Teatro Verdi in Salerno and this probably influenced the artist in his love for the subjects. Caputo always showed a great devotion to music, which is the central theme of some of his most famous works: Sinfonia (Paris, Musee d’Orsay) and Una Prova (Lima, Museo de Arte Italiano).
In a letter sent to the art critic Vittorio Pica dated 30 March 1915, the artist stated:
'…I love music, every kind of music, without exceptions… I love 'seeing’ the music, I have to be able to follow with my eyes the harmonic movements of the violin bows, and the theatrical and nervous gesture of the conductor…As you can understand half of the pleasure I am getting from music is purely visual…’
(translated from Italian, M. Picone Petrusa (ed.), Un 'Italiano di Parigi’ Ulisse Caputo: Salerno 1872- Parigi 1848, exhibition catalogue (Palazzo S. Agostino, 6 December 1997-6 January 1998) Salerno, 1997, pp. 15-16).