Girl, gather the grapes in the vicinity of Naples. 1827 Karl Pavlovich Bryullov (1799-1852)

Description of Karl Bryullov’s painting A Girl Gathering Grapes in the Vicinity of Naples

The painting was painted when the artist was in Italy for the purpose of learning and perfecting his craft. Bryullov tried to find beauty in everyday things and transfer it to the canvas.

The painting depicts a harvest scene. The girl in the center is picking grapes in a basket that hangs from her left hand. In order to reach for the next bunch, she had to turn around, stand on her toes, grasp the pole and reach her right hand out to the grapes, leaning back slightly. The girl looks as if she is frozen in a dance. She is graceful and graceful. Perhaps the girl is even humming some Italian song and moving to the beat of the tambourine.

The second girl is lying on the step. She is resting her head on a large green pumpkin. She is holding a tambourine. The girl lightly strikes it. She looks as if she were dancing, tired, and laid down to rest in the shade of a vine. The lying girl’s face is flirtatious and playful. The heroines hair is gathered, but light curls are out of her hair. A blush burns on her cheeks.

In the background on the right is a boy in a shirt. He is carrying a large bottle of wine. The boy is focused on this activity. To the lower right, a spring spurts water, adding motion to the picture. A donkey in the background is harnessed, and the outlines of bushes, trees, and mountains can be seen.

The artist uses shades of red to emphasize the center of the picture: these are the girls’ clothes, a tambourine, a coral necklace, and a blush. The white color of the clothes gives a glow, reflects the bright Italian sun. Shades of green and ochre frame the painting: vines, bushes and trees, pumpkins, a spring with water and earth.

The light clothing of the painting’s characters conveys the warmth of the Italian summer. The girl in the center shows her slender legs through the thin fabric. And the lying girl’s blouse is falling, slightly exposing the white breasts. And it is not noticeable that the girls are busy hard work.