Portrait of a Lady 1912

Giovanni Boldini made this portrait with oil on panel sometime in the late nineteenth or early twentieth century, though, with paintings like this, it's as though time becomes condensed. The ochre background and loose brushstrokes almost evoke a dreamlike quality. I can imagine Boldini trying to capture the essence of the lady, almost as though he were trying to pin a butterfly in mid-flight. The paint around her face is thin, allowing her features to emerge with subtle light. This makes the dark smudges around the head more expressive. There is such tenderness in the way he lays down the colours to create the curve of her cheek. It's as though the painting is a fleeting impression, a memory just out of reach. Painters are always in conversation with one another across time. Boldini echoes the old masters, but with a modern sensibility. It’s this tension that makes the work so intriguing; it is an invitation to wonder, dream, and imagine what was going on for Boldini and the lady he painted.