Italian Woman, or Woman with Yellow Sleeve (L'Italienne)

A supremely poised young woman is painted in three-quarter view. Her right hand curls around the handle of a mirror, while she appears to be caressing a lock of hair with her left. She wears a white blouse under a black velvet bodice and yellow detachable sleeves over her arms. This study is one of a number that Corot painted during the last years of his life. According to an early biographer, Etienne Moreau-Nélaton, he would take a week out from painting landscapes to paint models in the studio.

Corot had a particular interest in Italian costume, and kept clothes in his studio with which to dress his models. Both the bodice, actually part of a dress, and the sleeves also appear in other paintings. He was not interested in authenticity, but took delight in mixing up the pieces to create a pleasing juxtaposition of colours and textures.

Text: © The National Gallery, London

Painting photographed in its frame by Google Arts & Culture, 2023.