Portrait of an Elderly Italian Woman, Sigrid Bölling (1852 -1917)

Portrait of an Elderly Italian Woman
Signed S. Bölling,
Norwegian painter, She came from a prominent family in the Norwegian aristocracy;
At age 22, she traveled to Paris and enrolled in the academy directed by Filippo Colarossi, who was of Italian origin; this academy was the only one that allowed women to paint nude male models. It enjoyed worldwide renown, and more than 150 foreign artists—particularly from Northern Europe and North America—attended it.
It was located on the Île de la Cité until 1881, then moved to Montparnasse until its
closure in 1930.
The story behind this painting stems from a friendship between two female painters:
Elin Danielson-Gambagi (1861–1919), of Finnish origin, and Sigrid Bölling. They met during a class at the Colarossi Academy, and a deep friendship
bound them together in late-19th-century Paris.
During one of their trips to Italy—in
what may have been a challenge—they decided to paint this old woman.
Kléopatra Gambagi’s painting is now housed at the National Gallery of Finland (inv. AV 4632), 45.5 cm x 46 cm.
Each in her own style,
they expressed their personal empathy with the subject.
With a great chromatic simplicity reminiscent of 17th-century Italian painters,
the artist immortalizes the story of this woman, originally from southern France or
northern Italy; her gaze has grown heavy and seems to be lost in
memories