Resting (Antonio Mancini, Art Institute)

            Resting, c. 1887 by Antonio Mancini, Italian, 1852–1930.

This painting caught my eye at the Chicago Art Institute, . You could easily miss it. It is in a relatively obscure location, a side room, not a prominent place. Searching the internet, I find that I'm not the only one drawn to this painting.

The Art Institute says:
"With its dramatic impasto, particularly in the bedsheets that surround the ruddy-cheeked, soporific young woman, Resting demonstrates the bold, almost sculptural quality of Mancini's work from this period. The array of reflective decanters near the subject's bed suggests that she is a convalescent, perhaps recovering from an illness, given her flushed complexion. Nevertheless, her sensuous appearance conveys as much erotic allure as it does innocent vulnerability. She looks wistfully off to the side, refusing to meet the viewer's gaze, her barely parted lips and slightly tilted head contributing to her dreamy demeanor. The lyrical atmosphere of this intimate—and intimately scaled—image seems intensified by the curve of the model's abundant, black hair flowing across the length of the large, white pillow behind her; the red roses she clutches in her hand; and the manner in which she coyly pulls down the sheet to reveal her breast and shoulder."

Wikipedia:
"Mancini worked at the forefront of Verismo movement, an indigenous Italian response to 19th-century Realist aesthetics. His usual subjects included children of the poor, juvenile circus performers, and musicians he observed in the streets of Naples....While in Paris in the 1870s, Mancini met Impressionists Edgar Degas and Édouard Manet. He became friends with John Singer Sargent, who famously pronounced him to be the greatest living painter.  His mature works show a brightened palette with a striking impasto technique on canvas and a bold command of pastels on paper....
Impastoed paint serves several purposes. First, it makes the light reflect in a particular way, giving the artist additional control over the play of light on the painting. Second, it can add expressiveness to the painting, the viewer being able to notice the strength and speed applied by the artist. Third, impasto can push a painting into a three dimensional sculptural rendering. The first objective was originally sought by masters such as Rembrandt and Titian, to represent folds in clothes or jewels: it was then juxtaposed with more delicate painting. Much later, the French impressionists created entire canvases of rich impasto textures. Vincent van Gogh used it frequently for aesthetics and expression."
   

Taken on: May 30, 2010

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Resting

Antonio Mancini

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Sets appears in: • Best of Chicago Trip • Chicago

Groups appears in: • Chicagoist Photos • Chicago Reader more » • Explore Chicago • Chicago Capture « less

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