Lounging Nude in Marrakesh by Salvatore Pinto (American, 1905-1966)

Painted in a brilliant palette of orange, deep red, sky blue and forest green, this scene of a half nude female figure lounging on a black settee probably dates to the 1930s when Salvatore Pinto visited Marrakesh and painted many scenes there. Born in Italy, Pinto moved to America as a young man, studied at the Philadelphia Museum of Fine Arts, and then achieved public acclaim when he was discovered by Albert Barnes in 1928. Barnes purchased several of his paintings -- some, like this, no doubt reminded Barnes of his many paintings by Matisse -- and they are available to the public today at the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Chapter of the Works Progress Administration supported his work in printmaking and painting in the 1930s, but he suffered an accident after 1945 which made further painting impossible. His works can also be found at the Noyes Museum of Art in New Jersey. The painting is oil on linen; two labels survive from the preeminent Locks Gallery in Philadelphia. The painting is framed under glass, which has kept the oil paint bright and clean.