Gregorio SCILTIAN

(Rostov 1900 - Roma 1985)

"Ritratto di signora is a work by Gregorio Sciltian realized in Milan in 1933. Its attribution is certain, despite not being included in the Opera Omnia published by Hoepli in 1986, shortly after the artist's death. Sciltian had just arrived in Milan after a difficult five-year period in Paris to set up an exhibition at the Galleria Scopinich Dedalo. Due to the success of the exhibition, he decided to stay in Italy.The work bears, at the bottom left, his signature with the French transliteration and, curiously, the name of the city of Milan, also written in the French style; in fact, Sciltian had planned to return to Paris after the summer of that year, but the warm reception his painting received, which was dedicated to a clear representation of reality, convinced him to seek his fortune in Lombardy, traditionally attentive to such forms of artistic language.The 1930s would be a fruitful period for the painter, who gained the attention of an increasingly high-class group of collectors. Starting in the 1940s, he began to achieve success as a portraitist of the Milanese high aristocracy. The market hailed the Russian painter as a resounding success, with his trompe l'oeil works and still lifes being highly sought after by collectors, starting from the difficult post-war years. However, Sciltian continued to be a highly sought-after and fashionable artist even during the years of the economic boom.This unusual portrait has a rather rare composition, with the painting still very close to the works he created during his stay in Paris between 1927 and 1932. Upon returning to Italy, the artist struggled to regain his plastic strength, as evident in this work, which is still in transition. In his portraits, Sciltian always captures unexpected details that characterize the subject, and in this case, he lingers on the melancholic gaze of the lady depicted and her thick, curly hair." Stefano Sbarbaro

Signed, placed, dated "G. Chiltian, Milan, 33" (lower left)