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拍品专文
The present lot is one of several variants of a composition by Zonaro which depicts the bustling passenger quay at Galata, in Constantinople.
Executed with a profoundly Impressionist plein-air technique, characterised by a highly keyed palette of bright blue, pink and orange, Zonaro has sought above all to evoke the hustle and bustle of the busy port. The city's key monuments are evoked rather than described, rising above the steam of the jockeying ships and the shimmering haze of warm light, the Hagia Sophia modelled in blocks of light and shade. Zonaro has paid great attention to capturing the exact atmospheric conditions; the long shadow thrown across the foreground and the sunlight on the facades in the background indicate a late afternoon setting, while the carefully modulated blues of the water and billowing sails in the background clearly indicate a breeze blowing up the Bosphorus from the South.
The juxtaposition of a modern industrial port scene with Constantinople's ancient landmarks evokes the city's position at a cross-roads between the old and the new, between East and West, an impression reinforced by the visual metaphor of the ships' funnels and masts, which echo the minarets in the background.
As official painter to the Sultan, Zonaro had a brief to present Constantinople as a forward looking, confident city, but in these smaller works, the artist translated this mandate into an intensely personal and spontaneous vision of the city which brings it vividly to life.
The present painting has been authenticated by Professor Cesare Mario Trevigne, the artist's great-grandson, and is sold with a letter dated 21 August 2014. It will be included in Professor Trevigne's archive under the title L'arrivo sulla riva di Galata 6.
Executed with a profoundly Impressionist plein-air technique, characterised by a highly keyed palette of bright blue, pink and orange, Zonaro has sought above all to evoke the hustle and bustle of the busy port. The city's key monuments are evoked rather than described, rising above the steam of the jockeying ships and the shimmering haze of warm light, the Hagia Sophia modelled in blocks of light and shade. Zonaro has paid great attention to capturing the exact atmospheric conditions; the long shadow thrown across the foreground and the sunlight on the facades in the background indicate a late afternoon setting, while the carefully modulated blues of the water and billowing sails in the background clearly indicate a breeze blowing up the Bosphorus from the South.
The juxtaposition of a modern industrial port scene with Constantinople's ancient landmarks evokes the city's position at a cross-roads between the old and the new, between East and West, an impression reinforced by the visual metaphor of the ships' funnels and masts, which echo the minarets in the background.
As official painter to the Sultan, Zonaro had a brief to present Constantinople as a forward looking, confident city, but in these smaller works, the artist translated this mandate into an intensely personal and spontaneous vision of the city which brings it vividly to life.
The present painting has been authenticated by Professor Cesare Mario Trevigne, the artist's great-grandson, and is sold with a letter dated 21 August 2014. It will be included in Professor Trevigne's archive under the title L'arrivo sulla riva di Galata 6.