Female portrait
Pastels on paper
Early 20th century
Painting 56 x 43 cm
Frame 84 x 70 cm
Excellent condition
A female portrait of exceptional elegance, distinguished by the grace and beauty of the protagonist.
Seen in profile, the young woman's features are painted with great finesse and convey a serene feeling, marked only by a slight veil of sadness.
The sidelight illuminates the head and casts the face in shadow, creating a splendid chiaroscuro effect.
The rendering of the velvety skin and dark hair, pulled back, is excellent, creating a strong contrast with the light and very particular background.
The play of light and colors in the clothing, in an impressionistic style, blends perfectly with the background, creating a highly three-dimensional visual image, the result of great artistic skill and knowledge of portraiture.
The sparse setting further enhances the volumetric rendering of the composition.
The painting is executed with pastel colors, a technique widely used in the 19th century for portraits, especially of women.
Pastels emphasized more delicate images and, when applied with a skilled hand, surpassed oil paintings in realistic effect.
One of the great artists who favored pastel portraits was undoubtedly the talented Venetian painter Federico Zandomeneghi (Venice 1841-Paris 1917).
The author's style recalls some works by the Master, Venetian by birth but Parisian by adoption, where the model, often young and charming, appeared in profile in a composed pose, with her hair pulled back.
The unusual and extremely elegant colors, as well as the accentuated luminosity, highlight the unusual characteristics of this portrait and make it particularly captivating.
It is presented in excellent condition, still in its original gilded frame complete with glass and passe-partout.
