Portrait of Lucy Baldouf, The Artist’s Stepdaughter

This works is an endearing portrayal and one of the few signs of Xavier Mellery’s private life in the whole of his oeuvre. In this intimate scene, the girl is leaning in a relaxed pose on the window ledge and daydreaming with a bunch of flowers in her hand. The quick and varied brushstrokes in her dress add vivacity to…

This works is an endearing portrayal and one of the few signs of Xavier Mellery’s private life in the whole of his oeuvre. In this intimate scene, the girl is leaning in a relaxed pose on the window ledge and daydreaming with a bunch of flowers in her hand. The quick and varied brushstrokes in her dress add vivacity to the whole picture. The perspective foreshortening of her left arm and the curtain create a sense of space. The light, entering from the right, through a varied shadow pattern on the girl’s face and dress and envelops her in a gentle atmosphere which, together with the restrained colours, emphasises the intimacy of the scene.