William Bouguereau

With Goupil & Cie., Paris (acquired directly from the artist, March 8, 1872, no. 6222);

With Knoedler & Co., New York (acquired from the above, 1 October 1872);

Private Collection, United States;

Private Collection, Arizona;

Private collection.

C. Vendryès, Dictonnaire illustré des Beaux-Arts, Paris 1885, p. 47 (as Indigence, buste).

M. Vachon, William Bouguereau, Paris 1900, p. 151 (as Indigence).

M. S. Walker, "William-Adolphe Bouguereau, A Summary Catalogue of the Paintings" in William-Adolphe Bouguereau, L'Art Pompier, exhibition catalogue, Borghi & Co., New York 1991, p. 68.

D. Bartoli, F. C. Ross, William Bouguereau, Catalogue Raisonné of his Painted Work, New York 2010, p. 143, no. 1872/07, illustrated.

Wrapped warmly in a shawl, the “chilly girl” of the present work is among the most recognizable of Bouguereau’s models of the early 1870s. She shields herself from the chill of rain with a similarly patterned cloth, though of different colors, in Pendant l’orage and is then transformed into an Italian country musician wearing a crown of flowers in La Jeune fille au tambourin, as well as Tête d’Italienne avec une couronne de laurier among other works (Bartoli with Ross, p. 143). In the present work the young woman is set against a dark background, light glinting across her gold bead necklace while softly illuminating her pale skin. The boldly striped textile of saturated colors serves as the composition’s primary decorative motif while also inspiring an emotional resonance with the viewer.