Portrait of little Subercaseaux, 1891

Oil on canvas, 170 x 98.5 cm
Museo Giovanni Boldini, inv. 1364

This portrait is one of the most representative works of Giovanni Boldini’s mature style. It depicts one of the two sons of Chilean diplomat Ramón Subercaseaux Vicuña, probably the eldest son Pedro, who used to accompany his father on his frequent visits to artist friends. It is speculated that the canvas was made on one of these visits, which would explain why the work, instead of belonging to the Chilean diplomat, remained in Boldini’s atelier and from there came to the Ferrara civic collections.

The painting is characterized by an extraordinary psychological introspection rendered through the body language of the portrayed subject. The young man, in fact, sits on the sofa, and his gaze reveals not only impatience with prolonged sitting, but also a certain restlessness that heralds incipient puberty. The refined color palette, entirely played out in shades of white, black and gray, is inspired by Velázquez’s painting, which Boldini had been able to admire during his trip to Madrid in 1889 with Degas. Successfully exhibited at the third Jahresausstellung in Munich in 1891, the work earned the artist a first-class gold medal and acclaim from German critics.