Giovanni Boldini

Tooth's Gallery, Paris (acquired directly from the artist, circa 1875)
Possibly, Tooth's Gallery, London (transferred from the above circa 1879)
Private Collection, Buenos Aires
Thence by descent

Possibly, London, Arthur Tooth & Sons, Winter Exhibition, 1879, no. 74 (as On the Terrace, Rome)
Flint Institute of Arts, Michigan (on extended loan from 2010-2013)

The following condition report was kindly provided by Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc.: This finely detailed work is very well preserved. It seems to still bear an old, yellowed varnish and apart from a few spots around the extreme edges, there are no retouches. The work can be hung in its current state but it may respond well to careful cleaning.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

Like fellow Italian ex-patriate artists Giuseppe De Nittis and Federico Zandomeneghi (see lot 50) Giovanni Boldini found his creative stride in the thriving art capital of Paris. He came to France following a lucrative sojourn in London, where he gained entrance to the highest echelons of society producing portraits in the grand tradition of Reynolds, Gainsborough and Romney. As in London, Boldini experienced immediate success in Paris, a culturally vivacious and peripatetic city which fueled his imagination and offered him the friendships of artists as diverse as Edgar Degas, John Singer Sargent, Paul Helleu, Édouard Manet, and Jean-Léon Gérôme among others. Small in scale and jewel-like, these early Paris paintings appealed to new American and European collectors and Boldini's dealer, Adolphe Goupil, was eager to accommodate this ready market. His flamboyant style was quickly admired and prompted the legendary art historian and connoisseur Bernard Berenson to describe the artist as the quintessential Belle Époque painter, writing: "As expert on 'society,' Boldini perfectly captured the female elegance of this era" (Bernard Berenson, Giorni d'autunno in Romagna, Pellegrinaggi d'Arte, 1958).

Although On the Terrace is not dated, the scale and brushwork align it with works painted between 1872 and 1874 (and perhaps as late as 1880) when he depicts young women in landscapes, interiors or in the gardens of Versailles. The present work was possibly exhibited at Tooth Gallery's 1879 Winter Exhibition in London as On the Terrace, Rome (no. 74). Giovanni's brother, Giuseppe, lived in Rome and while the artist did visit his brother, it is difficult to ascertain exactly when and for how long.

In On the Terrace, Boldini expertly captures the intricate lace and ruffles of the figures' dresses; even the reader's grey pearl earring and gold cuff bracelet sparkle in the sunlight. While Boldini's interest in the élégantes is evident, his bravado bushwork holds the viewer's attention as his dashes of pigment, both thoughtful and spontaneous, impart a tenuous energy to the composition. Vibrant strokes of green and yellow seem to tumble down the wrought-iron terrace and climb frenetically up the plain brick exterior. In this garden of unkempt roses, Boldini envisions a beauty that is neither manicured nor ordered, yet undeniable in its appeal.

As the great American writer and doyenne of Parisian artistic and literary circles Gertrude Stein noted: "Once time has established values in their correct order, Boldini will be recognized as the greatest painter of the last century. The new school [of painting] derives from him, as he was the first to simplify lines and planes" (as quoted in Vito Doria, Il Genio di Boldini, Bologna, n.d., p. 120).