Frequent frequenter of the renowned intellectual salon of Countess Clara Maffei, Francesco Hayez painted the portrait of the noblewoman from Bergamo while she was separating from her husband Andrea, a poet and intellectual from Trentino, to whom Clara left the painting in her will. The Venetian artist, one of the major protagonists of the Italian romantic season and appreciated portrait painter, decided to represent her with a simple, but very refined, clothing - a soft fur shawl, an impalpable embroidered silk scarf wrapped around the neck, a few simple jewels - which highlights the face illuminated by a slightly ironic smile and the intelligent and lively expression. The introspective investigation that characterizes the work, expertly rendered by our friend Hayez, allows us to grasp the psychological depth of the young woman, tenacious and strong-willed, "ardent interpreter of the romantic spirit".
Protagonist of the political cultural life of Milan, as well as the animator of one of the most renowned salons, Clara Maffei, after the death of her only daughter, in 1834 opened the doors of her city home, gathering around her Italian and foreign writers, musicians and artists , from Giuseppe Verdi to Honoré de Balzac, to the same Francesco Hayez who in 1835 painted, commissioned by Andrea Maffei, Valenza Gradenigo in front of the inquisitor father , a work that adorned the most visible wall of the living room, one of the best known and most appreciated cultural centers from Milan.
Title: Self-portrait of Clara Maffei
Author: Francesco Hayez
Date: 1845
Technique:
Displayed in: MAG Alto Garda Museum
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