Giovanni Boldini
Italian, 1842–1931
Crossing the Street
1873–75
Boldini’s view of a busy street captures the rapid pace of city life in Paris. As figures hurry along in different directions, an elegantly dressed—and unaccompanied—woman crosses the cobbled street, attracting the attention of a man in a carriage. In her haste, she has raised her skirt and exposed her petticoat, adding to her allure. The painting is dated twice, perhaps indicating that the artist finished or reworked it two years after he began.
| Medium | oil on panel |
| Dimensions | 18 3/16 × 14 7/8 in. (46.2 × 37.8 cm) Frame: 24 1/16 × 21 × 2 5/8 in. (61.1 × 53.3 × 6.7 cm) |
| Object Number | 1955.650 |
| Acquisition | Acquired by Sterling and Francine Clark before 1955 |
| Status | On View |
Image Caption
Giovanni Boldini, Crossing the Street, 1873–75, oil on panel. Clark Art Institute, 1955.650
Select Bibliography
Søndergaard, Sidsel Maria, ed. Women in Impressionism: From Mythical Feminine to Modern Woman. Exhibition catalogue. Milan and Copenhagen: Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek with Skira Editore, 2006.
Dini, Piero and Francesca Dini. La Vita e l'Iter Artistico. Volume I of Giovanni Boldini, 19421931: Catalogo Ragionato. Torino: Umberto Allemandi & C., 2002.
New York: M. Knoedler & Co.. Views of Paris. Jan. 9-Feb. 4, 1939.
Cunningham, Charles C., et al. The Elegant Academics: Chroniclers of 19th-Century Parisian Life. Exhibition catalogue. Williamstown, MA: The Clark, 1974.
Feeney, Maura. A La Mode: Women's Fashions in French Art, 1850-1900. Exhibition catalogue. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1982.
Cass, David B. and John Wetenhall. Italian Paintings 1850-1910 from Collections in the Northeastern United States. Exhibition catalogue. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1982.
Breuning, Margaret. "Exhibitions: Views of Paris" Magazine of Art 32 (January 1939):34–35.
Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1970.
Brooks, John H. Highlights: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1981.
Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling & Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1972.
Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1984.
Steele, Valerie. Fashion and Eroticism: Ideals of Feminine Beauty from the Victorian Era to the Jazz Age. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1985.
Kern, Steven, ed. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1992.
Anonymous. "Nineteenth-Century Painting and Sculpture." The Magazine Antiques 152 (October 1997): 522–31.
Hunter, Norah T. The Art of Floral Design. 2nd edition. Albany, NY: Delmar Publishers, 2000.
Dini, Piero and Francesca Dini. Catalogo Ragionato della Pittura a Olio con un'Ampia Selezione di Pastelli, Acquerelli e Disegni. Volume III of Giovanni Boldini, 18421931: Catalogo ragionato. Torino: Umberto Allemandi & C., 2002.
Lees, Sarah. Giovanni Boldini in Impressionist Paris. Exhibition catalogue. With contributions by Richard Kendall and Barbara Guidi. Ferrara, Italy: Ferrara Arte; Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 2009.
Lees, Sarah, ed. Nineteenth-Century European Paintings at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute; New Haven and London: distributed by Yale University Press, 2012. Doria, Bianca. Boldini: Catalogo Generale dei Disegni. Milan: Skira, 2000. Panconi, Tiziano. Giovanni Boldini: L'Opera Completa. Firenze: Edifir Edizioni Firenze, 2002. Cahill, Timothy. Art in Nature: The Clark Art Inside and Out. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francince Clark Art Institute, 2005 Ganz, James A. and Richard R. Brettell. Great French Paintings from the Clark: Barbizon through Impressionism. Exhibition catalogue. New York: Skira Rizzoli Publications; Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 2011.
Lees, Sarah, ed. Nineteenth-Century European Paintings at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute; New Haven and London: distributed by Yale University Press, 2012. Doria, Bianca. Boldini: Catalogo Generale dei Disegni. Milan: Skira, 2000. Panconi, Tiziano. Giovanni Boldini: L'Opera Completa. Firenze: Edifir Edizioni Firenze, 2002. Cahill, Timothy. Art in Nature: The Clark Art Inside and Out. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francince Clark Art Institute, 2005 Ganz, James A. and Richard R. Brettell. Great French Paintings from the Clark: Barbizon through Impressionism. Exhibition catalogue. New York: Skira Rizzoli Publications; Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 2011.
EUROPEAN PAINTINGS CATALOGUE ENTRY
Provenance
[Alexis Febvre, Paris, in 1876]; [Knoedler, New York, sold to Clark, 31 December 1925]; Robert Sterling Clark (1925–55); Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1955.
