Luigi Garibbo 1858 - Italy view from Florence young woman - Tempera painting

Luigi Garibbo (1782 – 1869) Young Woman with a Broken Jug. View of Florence from the hills. Tempera on paper by Luigi Garibbo in 1858. This painting with warm tones transports us at first glance to the southern lands: ochre earth, maritime vegetation, and a city with terracotta roofs. We are facing Florence and its summer sky. In the foreground, a young woman, barefoot, wipes her face while looking at her broken jug from which water escapes, collected from the visible spring on the left of the painting. The broken jug is part of the well-known codes of the 18th century to evoke the loss of virginity. Through the detail of the sun-bleached vegetation, we admire the painter's skill in working with both small flat areas and multiple fine strokes. The further the landscape recedes, the more the brush seems to have calmed, giving way to softer tones and more suggested outlines. Luigi Garibbo Genoa 1782 - Florence, 1869. Signed bottom left L. Garibbo 1858. Original frame. Bubble glass. Probably never reframed. Frame measurements: 37 X 28 cm. Measurements of the work visible in the mat: 27 X 18 cm. Born in Genoa in 1782, Luigi Garibbo trained at the Ligustica Academy of Fine Arts before producing engravings on copper, sometimes alone or with the famous Milanese engraver Paolo Fumagalli. He then adopted watercolour, a technique previously considered minor, ideal for quickly capturing light and atmosphere. This approach, combined with pencil sketches, led to an abundant production, valuable both artistically and documentarily: it bears witness to the appearance of Genoa before the major transformations of the early 19th century.