Federico Zandomeneghi

Durand-Ruel & Cie, Paris (no. 7241; acquired from the artist on 25 March 1912)
Angelo Sommaruga, Paris
Galleria Sianesi, Milan (stamp on the reverse)
Acquired by the father of the present owner in the 1950s; thence by descent

Enrico Piceni, Federico Zandomeneghi, Milano, 1967, no. 708, the present version illustrated
Enrico Piceni, Federico Zandomeneghi, Milano, 1991, no. 708, the present version illustrated
Fondazione Enrico Piceni, Federico Zandomeneghi, catalogo generale, Milano, 2006, p. 8, other version illustrated, p. 306, no. 488, the present version catalogued & illustrated

The canvas has not been lined and is securely attached to its wooden stretcher. There are four pin-head sized nail holes at the four extreme corners (barely noticeable) and one minor superficial scratch in the girl's sleeve as visible in the catalogue illustration. Some very fine vertical lines of craquelure are visible to the left, closer to the framing edge; however these are not visually distracting and appear to be stable. Ultra-violet lights shows no visible sign of retouching. This work is in very good original condition and ready to hang. Presented in a decorative gilt frame.
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La Curiosité exemplifies the artist’s unique painterly technique blending impressionism and elements of pointillism. Federico Zandomeneghi’s ability to build forms with the only use of colours was most certainly derived from his acquaintance with Seurat’s and Signac’s experimentations based on Cheuvreul’s theories. Fine brushstrokes of paint have been carefully juxtaposed to create this exquisite portrait of a young girl discreetly peeking through a lifted curtain, while delicate pastel shades of colour bring to the fore her youth and purity.

The female figure became predominant in Zandó’s oeuvre from 1894, a year that marked a turning point in his career. The artist signed a contract with famous French art dealer Paul Durand-Ruel, who insisted he produced more works depicting female figures that would satiate the taste of a newly enriched bourgeoisie.

While revealing the influence of his contemporaries - Degas and Renoir were certainly key to the development of his own style – La Curiosité holds the key to Zandò’s recollection that 'looking, listening, arguing, I was transformed like all other artists, from Pissarro to Degas, from Manet to Renoir; my artistic life was a series of infinite evolutions that cannot be analyzed, that cannot be explained… As for my technique, a very vague term, the one I used was my own, I did not borrow from anyone' (as quoted in Piceni, 1991, p. 60).

An almost identical version to this painting was sold at Finarte, Milan, on 19 October 1989. Although Finarte identified it as no. 708 of the Piceni catalogue raisonné, the archival photo provided by Durand-Ruel and published by Piceni does not illustrate the picture offered at Finarte, but the present work.