Cousin Argia, is a remarkable oil painting on cardboard painted by Giovanni Fattori. This piece was inscribed "Gio. Fattori alla sua cugina Argia. Anno 1861" which gave it its name, however this inscription is not thought to be by Giovanni himself. Fattori was one of the prominent Macchiaioli painters - an artist group based in Tuscany, which rejected the rigid art conventions of the Italian art academies and focused their energy on painting en plein air. This was done to capture the natural essence of the subject matter. This piece is one fine example of such realism - an accurate and unromanticised depiction of the subject. In the scene, we are presented with a woman who is sitting upright against a cool background. The woman gazes directly upon the audience as if trying to communicate her insights to them. She sits in an elegant pose on a wooden chair and a delicate rose is clutched lightly in her hands. The woman wears a grey gown with flared sleeves and a white undershirt. The composition of this piece is triangular. The artist has used precise and loose brushstrokes and a balanced layering of light and shadow to bring the subject into focus with an unparalleled attention. The overall palette is vibrant and earthy. The depiction of hazy shadows demonstrates the visual depth of the scene without a strong contrast of light and dark. A remarkable feature of this painting, is the absence of elaborate jewels. This was a well-thought out decision of the artist, otherwise the psychological depth of this portrait would have been lost. Even with a comparative loose handling of both the paints and brush, the artist has successfully conveyed the sense of emotion and presence of the woman through attention to subtler details such as - the buttons on the collar and the cuffs, the folds of the garment, the details in the rose, and lastly the light reflected in her eyes.
She is just fully dissociating in fifty layers of heavy linen, staring into the absolute void like she just checked her bank account after a wild weekend or realized she has to sit through a three-hour corporate Zoom call with zero snacks. It is this peak Macchiaioli realist vibe where the artist uses aggressive chiaroscuro shadows to show she is having a massive existential meltdown, but because it is Florence, she still has to look aesthetically moody for the gram.
