Drie vrouwen uit Genzano di Roma 1819

Bartolomeo Pinelli created this ink drawing titled, "Three women from Genzano di Roma." Pinelli was active in Rome, documenting the dress and customs of the working classes who lived in the surrounding countryside. This image constructs meaning through its depiction of everyday rural life in the Papal States. The cultural references are clear: traditional dress, the tools of labor such as baskets, and the suggestion of a hardscrabble life in the landscape. Pinelli made many images documenting the lives of the Roman Campagna, during a time when the art world largely focused on religious and aristocratic subjects. Was Pinelli self-consciously progressive, or simply documenting the world around him? The answer lies in further research, including analysis of other images, texts, and the economic structures that shaped Pinelli's career. These are the kinds of resources that help us better understand art within its social and institutional contexts.