(Livorno 1859–1933 Florence) Young Lady with a Dog, circa 1895, signed V. Corcos, oil on canvas, 108 x 85 cm, framed, (GG)

Exhibited:
Rome, Accademia Valentino, La seduzione da Boucher a Warhol, 20 November 1992 – 14 February 1993, ill. p. 57.

Provenance:
European private collection

Vittorio Corcos lived in Paris until 1886, working exclusively with the prominent art dealer Adolph Goupil who commissioned many of the portraits for which Corcos is most admired.
The present work probably dates to 1895 when the artist was already considered one of Italy’s pre-eminent portrait painters of elegant society ladies. In Young lady with a dog, Corcos depicts a captivating beauty kneeling on a bed. She gazes directly at the viewer as a young dog attempts to climb up. The elegant female figure wears a tulle satin dress celebrating the taste for luxury that characterized the period.
The relatively empty background serves to focus the viewer’s attention solely on the exquisitely dressed lady who, impeccably coiffed and styled, gazes intensely at the viewer.
The dog, most probably a terrier, is as stylish and refined as the elegant lady playing with him. Most terriers are kept as companion dogs as they are loyal and affectionate.
Images of female beauty were extremely valuable in the late 19th century and the present work illustrates clearly why Corcos was so highly regarded in his own time.

In the background (of the Lady) the relief “The night” by Bertel Thorvaldsen is displayed