Provenance
Reserved March 1869 in the artist's studio by William Hood Stewart [1820-1897], Philadelphia and Paris; (his estate sale, American Art Association, New York, 3-4 February 1898, 2nd day, no. 114); William Andrews Clark [1839-1925], New York; bequest April 1926 to the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington; acquired 2015 by the National Gallery of Art.
[1] _Fortuny (1838-1874)_, Exh. cat., Museu Nacional dArt de Catalunya, Barcelona, 2003: no. 111, 300-304, 531.
Accession Number
2015.143.12
Medium
oil on wood
Dimensions
overall: 53.34 × 82.55 cm (21 × 32 1/2 in.) | framed: 86.36 × 116.84 × 13.97 cm (34 × 46 × 5 1/2 in.)
Classification
Painting
Credit Line
Corcoran Collection (William A. Clark Collection)
Tags
Painting Impressionist & Modern (1851–1900) Oil Painting Spanish
Background & Context
Background Story
The Choice of a Model from 1868-74 is a major work of Fortuny's mature period, depicting an artist choosing a model in the brilliantly colored, virtuosically painted manner that makes Fortuny one of the most technically accomplished painters of the 19th century. The 1868-74 date places this across Fortuny's most productive period, when he was producing the brilliantly colored genre subjects that are his most accomplished works, and the subject—an artist choosing a model—allowed Fortuny to exercise his talent for depicting the elegant interiors and brilliantly colored costumes that are his most characteristic subjects.
Cultural Impact
The Choice of a Model is important in Fortuny's oeuvre because it demonstrates the brilliantly colored genre subject that is his most distinctive contribution to 19th-century painting. The subject—an artist choosing a model in an elegant interior—allowed Fortuny to exercise his talent for depicting the brilliantly colored costumes and elegant interiors that made his paintings among the most sought-after of the 19th century.
Why It Matters
The Choice of a Model is Fortuny's brilliantly colored genre at its most virtuosic: an artist choosing a model in an elegant interior rendered with the technical virtuosity and brilliant color that make his paintings the most sought-after of the 19th century. The 1868-74 painting shows every surface brilliantly observed and brilliantly painted.
