This “Self-Portrait” by Mario de Maria, known as Marius Pictor, is an important testimony to the artist’s early mature period, developed during his stay in Paris. Executed in oil on canvas and signed at the centre “M Pictor / Paris 1878”, the work documents a moment of personal and professional reflection, when the artist was actively engaging with the European painting of the late nineteenth century.
From an iconographic perspective, the painting depicts the artist half-length, his gaze directed to one side. However, the intention is not celebratory. Instead, the image conveys a concentrated and tangible presence, constructed through energetic brushwork and a palette dominated by warm tones. Furthermore, the lightly suggested architectural background places the figure within a real setting without distracting from the central importance of the face.
Stylistically, the work reflects De Maria’s interest in a painterly language rich in materiality and light, already moving beyond the constraints of academic convention. As a result, the brushwork appears free yet controlled, while the treatment of light defines the volumes of the face through concise and effective solutions. In this sense, the self-portrait anticipates the atmospheric sensitivity that would become a defining feature of the artist’s later production.
Description: Oil on canvas, signed and dated at centre “M Pictor / Paris 1878”, bearing on the reverse a label from the Exhibition of Nineteenth-Century Paintings, Bologna, October 1945, a label from the Exhibition of Nineteenth-Century Emilian Painters, Bologna, 25 September – 15 November 1955, and an inscription signed by A. De Maria reading “Sketch of a self-portrait / by Mario de Maria”, H cm 51×62.
Exhibition: Exhibition of Nineteenth-Century Paintings, Bologna, October 1945, organised by the Associazione Francesco Francia; Exhibition of Nineteenth-Century Emilian Painters, Bologna, 25 September – 15 November 1955.
Provenance: Cinti Bianchini Collection, Bologna.
Hammer Price: € 9.920,00
Auction 67 – January 24th 2024 – Bolognese Collections – 19th and 20th century paintings
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