Girl in a Sailor's Blouse

About this artwork

Girl in a Sailor's Blouse is a paintings by Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani, created in 1918. The work was created using oil on canvas. It measures 25 3/4 × 18 1/4 in. (65.4 × 46.4 cm). The painting showcases the artistic techniques and aesthetic sensibilities of its era, reflecting both technical skill and cultural context. Artists of this period developed sophisticated approaches to composition, color, and subject matter that defined their artistic milieu. The work demonstrates mastery of the...

Art Historical Context

Amedeo Modigliani's *Girl in a Sailor'souse* (1918) captures the essence of early 20th-century Parisian bohemia through the Italian artist's distinctive portrait style. Painted in oil on canvas, this intimate work measures 25 3/4 × 18 1/4 inches and depicts a young woman with Modigliani's signature elongated, almond-shaped eyes, simplified yet expressive features. By 1918, as World War I drew to a close, Modigliani had refined his modernist approach, blending influences from African sculpture, Italian Renaissance, and the School of Paris to create stylized figures that convey quiet introspection and sensuality. The painting exemplifies Modigliani's mastery of oil techniques, with fluid brushwork and subtle color harmonies that evoke emotional depth in a compact composition. As a portrait of a woman—possibly a model from his circle—it reflects the era's fascination with female subjects amid cultural shifts toward individualism and modernity. Acquired as a gift from Charles F. Iklé in 1960, it now resides in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Modern and Contemporary Art department, offering visitors a window into the artist's brief but brilliant career, cut short by his death in 1920. (198 words)

About the Artist

Amedeo Modigliani · 1884–1920

Amedeo Modigliani (1884–1920) was an Italian painter and sculptor whose elegant, elongated figures and portraits rank among the most instantly recognizable images in modern art. Born in Livorno, Tuscany, to a Sephardic Jewish family, he studied at the academies of Florence and Venice before moving permanently to Paris in 1906, where he immersed himself in the bohemian artistic milieu of Montmartre...