Boldini and De Nittis Duel at Castello di Novara in 19th-Century Italian Show

The Castello di Novara continues its annual series of 19th-century art exhibitions with 'Boldini, De Nittis e les Italiens de Paris,' curated by Elisabetta Chiodini for the 2023-24 season. The show highlights the large community of Italian painters in Paris, then the absolute capital of art, but also includes those who built international careers without relocating. The first section features 'minor' genres like local painting by Francesco Paolo Michetti and Orientalism by Alberto Pasini, alongside an early 1870s Boldini. The central 'duel' between rivals Giovanni Boldini and Giuseppe De Nittis contrasts De Nittis's airy, complete painting with Boldini's controversial struggle between line and color. A room dedicated to Antonio Mancini showcases regional painting with humble splendor, while fourteen works by Federico Zandomeneghi (1876-1903) trace his evolution from realism to early 20th-century color triumphing over drawing. Another 'derby' compares Parisian and London views by De Nittis, Boldini, and Zandomeneghi. The intimate section presents increasingly unidealized human figures, followed by a focus on Vittorio Matteo Corcos's austerity. The 'vanity' room captures Boldini's dual nature as both a dandy and an avant-gardist using line as pure language. Across eight sections, the exhibition argues that the 19th century was a century oriented toward avant-garde revolution, not a transitional moment in painting's evolution.