Alberto Pasini

Commendatore Sebastiano Sandri, Turin
Edmundo Sacerdoti, Galleria d’Arte, Milan
Schiapparelli Arte, Biella
Sale: Christie’s, London, 19 June 2003, lot 23
Purchased at the above sale by the present owner

Turin, Galleria d’Arte della Gazzetta del Popolo, Mostra Commemorativa di A. Pasini e G.B. Quadrone, 1949, no. 55
Turin, Galleria Fogliatio, Pittori dell’800, 1954, no. 97, illustrated in the catalogue
Rome, Associazione Via Frattina, Mostra dei Maestri dell’Ottocento Pittorico Italiano, 1967

Marziano Bernardi, Alberto Pasini, (exh. cat.), Galleria Fogliato, Turin, 1949, pl. 55, illustrated
Enrico Piceni & Mario Monteverdi, Gli animali nella pintura italiana dell’800, Milan, 1966, pl. X, illustrated (titled Cavalli arabi al mercato)
Enrico Piceni, ed., Catalogo Bolaffi della pittura italiana dell’800, Turin, 1969, vol. II, p. 353, illustrated (titled Mercato, with incorrect dimensions 51 by 81cm.)
Agostino Mario Comanducci, Dizionario illustrato dei Pittori, Disegnatori e Incisori Italiani Moderni e Contemporanei, Milan, 1973, vol. IV, p. 2361, illustrated (as Bazar persiano)
Vittoria Botteri Cardoso, Alberto Pasini, Geneva, 1991, p. 350, no. 752, catalogued (titled Bazar persiano, or Mercato turco, or Cavalli arabi al mercato) & illustrated

The canvas has not been lined. There are some lines of faint, minor, hairline craquelure visible primarily in the white pigments of the wall to the left and in the upper-right cloud. These are not visually distracting and are consistent with the picture's age and fact it is not lined. Ultraviolet light reveals some minimal tiny scattered spots of retouching, notably in the shadowed areas in the rightmost stall, some pinhead-sized spots in the rump of the dark brown horse in the centre, a circa 2.5cm fine line in the sky to the upper right of the large dome, and scattered spots at the extreme edges addressing frame rubbing. This work is in very good condition, clean and ready to hang. Held in a decorative gilt Eli Wilner frame. The catalogue illustration is overall accurate, although the colours are somewhat more contrasted and less yellow overall.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Market Day is a rich example of Pasini’s carefully observed, naturalistic market scenes, painted when the artist was at the height of his career. Pasini expertly captures the bustle and diversity of the setting, letting the eye wander across the rhythmically arranged groupings. The work exemplifies the artist’s reputation as both a fine draughtsman and meticulous colourist, the figures captured precisely, almost photographically, and with the brilliant blues, golds, and pinks of the ladies’ dresses in the foreground contrasting against the darker colours of the figures in the background.

Mercato turco – or A Turkish Market – is one of the titles by which the present work has been known. Pasini first travelled to Constantinople on his landmark journey to the East accompanying Prosper Bourré in 1855, which began his career as an Orientalist painter. He returned to the city again in 1867, in that year receiving a commission from Sultan Abdul Mecit for two paintings now in the Dolmabahçe Palace, and stayed until 1869. In the present work Pasini deploys his observations of life in the East: ladies in their veils, traders both negotiating deals and awaiting customers, riders with their mounts, and men playing a board game – all have been brought together from across the Ottoman empire by trade.