Girl with Mandolin 1860 - 1865

Camille Corot made this painting of a girl with a mandolin, using oil on canvas. The visible brushwork gives the painting an energetic, unfinished quality. It is easy to imagine Corot in his studio, layering the paint to capture the soft lighting and the texture of the girl’s clothes. Although a painting such as this might hang in a grand salon, its aesthetic is thoroughly modern, even radically so. Corot was part of a generation of artists that broke with academic tradition, choosing a direct and expressive way of painting that felt authentic to their experience. Though the subject of a girl playing music might seem traditional, the method speaks to the rise of individualism in the 19th century, in which the artist’s own vision became paramount. Paint, brush, canvas, and of course, the artist’s skill, combined to produce this remarkable image. Ultimately, understanding the materials, making, and context in which it was created, challenges traditional distinctions between fine art and craft.