Primavera (bozzetto) 1901

Pasquale Celommi’s *Primavera*, or ‘Spring’ in Italian, is a small oil sketch, a *bozzetto*, likely made in the late 19th or early 20th century. You can see how Celommi’s brushstrokes create a soft focus, an impressionistic blur. It's all about capturing a mood, that feeling of a warm, breezy day. The paint looks thin, almost watery in places, especially in the sky and distant figures. Up close, though, you can see how he's layered strokes of green and white to build up the texture of the meadow. Look at the way he dabs little dots of color, red and white, to suggest wildflowers. I find myself particularly drawn to the figure on the right, the one with her hands above her head. Her pose is so natural, so unposed. It's a simple gesture, but it captures the joy of the season. Celommi was part of a group of artists working in the region of Abruzzo, in central Italy, at this time, who were dedicated to capturing everyday life in the countryside. Think of Jean-François Millet or even Corot, artists similarly interested in rural life and the beauty of the everyday. Like them, Celommi embraced the idea that art doesn't have to be grand or heroic, it can also be intimate and personal.