Country Girl Leaning against a Ladder
by LEGA, Silvestro, Oil on canvas, 38 x 29 cm
A young farm girl knits while leaning on a ladder, giving the viewer the impression of a casual encounter with country life. This painting probably belongs to the last decade of the painter’s life, when he was a frequent houseguest at a villa in the Tuscan countryside. Though ailing and becoming increasingly blind, the artist went on to paint the village and its local people with an eye for realistic effects.