Gino Piccioni 1873-1941 | Italian Wind on the Beach Signed "G. Piccioni" (lower right) Oil on canvas One of Italy's most significant Post-Impressionist figures, Gino Piccioni developed a singular style that captivated Italian collectors in the early 20th century and remains the focus of renewed interest today. This stunning composition, Wind on the Beach, highlights one of his most coveted subjects—the female nude—executed with a technique that showcases the artist at his most expressive and brilliant. One of the most refined practitioners of Roman Divisionism, Piccioni’s compositions are distinguished by their vivid color, luminosity and meticulous brushwork, reminiscent of the beachside figures painted by the famed Joaquín Sorolla. In Wind on the Beach, chromatic harmony and the dazzling effect of Mediterranean light take center stage. The artist masterfully captures how sunlight reflects off the woman's skin, diffused through a windblown veil, creating a mesmerizing ethereal quality. This painting was prominently exhibited at the 1909 Esposizione Nazionale di Belle Arti della Città di Rimini. Despite Piccioni’s numerous successes—such as the Ministry of Agriculture and Trade’s 1897 purchase of one of his works, the inclusion of his pastel in King Umberto I’s collection in 1900, and the prize he received at the Venice Biennale in 1901—Piccioni chose to retreat to the tranquility of the countryside in Tivoli, a small town near Rome. There, the artist lived in a former hermitage known as the Romitello, far from the business of Rome. Still beloved by collectors, the Palazzo Martinengo in Brescia’s recent exhibition, Women in Art: From Titian to Boldini, featured a preparatory pastel of this composition, displayed alongside works by Piccioni’s contemporaries. Circa 1909 Canvas: 38 3/4" high x 38 3/4" wide (98.34 x 98.34 cm) Frame: 47 1/8" high x 47 1/8" wide x 1 3/4" deep (119.70 x 119.70 x 4.45 cm) Provenance: Private Collection, Rome M.S. Rau, New Orleans Exhibited: Rimini, Esposizione Nazionale di Belle Arti della Città di Rimini, 1909, p. 31, no. 181