Private Collection, Paris (by 1970)
Galeria d'Arte Narciso, Turin
Private Collection
Sale: Piasa, Paris, December 11, 2000, lot 3, illustrated

Dario Cecchi, Boldini, Turin, 1962, p. 180, fig. a, illustrated
Carlo Ragghianti and Ettore Camesasca, L'opera completa di Boldini, Milan, 1970, p. 124-5, no.461b, illustrated
Giuseppe Luigi Marini, Catalogo Bolaffi della pittura italiana dell'Ottocento, Turin, 1972, no. 4, p. 46
Piero Dini, Francesca Dini, Giovanni Boldini, 1842-1931, Catalogo ragionato, Turin, 2002, vol. III, p. 474, no. 910, illustrated

Thin line of mat burn at all edges. Small loss to pigment at the base of the sculpture. Loss to lower left corner replaced with additional strip of paper on reverse. Diagonal crease in lower right corner. Tear at center left edge and repaired tear at lower right edge. Old adhesive visible on the reverse at the 3 corners and at center of left and right edges.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

In addition to his celebrated portraits of those lucky enough to sit in his Paris studio, by the mid-1880s, Boldini turned to the objects around them for inspiration. One familiar face in his studio was a white plaster bust of a cardinal given to Boldini by the director of the Uffizi, in lieu of payment for his portrait completed by Boldini in 1892 (Barbara Guidi, Giovanni Boldini in Impressionist Paris, exh. cat., 2009, p. 180-2). Although the attribution of this bust is given to Gian Lorenzo Bernini in several of Boldini's letters (see: Dini and Dini, p. 141-2), with his long hair and prominent nose, this bust more closely resembles a sculpture of Cardinal Leopoldo de' Medici (1617–1675) by Giovanni Battista Foggini (1652-1725) that was in the Louvre.

Among the paint brushes, various pieces of furniture and decorative objects found in this depiction of his studio interior, Boldini includes what appears to be a preliminary study for La Passeggiata al Bois (1909)—a work which he would later exhibit at the Salon in 1910.