February 25, 1846

We read that the Italian artist Giuseppe De Nittis (February 25, 1846 to August 21, 1884):

'Trained in Naples, ...[and] settled in Paris in 1868. There he befriended many of the Impressionist artists, particularly Edgar Degas.
Five of De Nittis' paintings were included in the First Impressionist Exhibition of 1874. He was committed to a naturalistic art that explored the changing play of light. He frequently painted snow scenes, showing solitary figures in wintry streets or parks. He also specialised in depictions of the newly constructed areas of Paris and its suburbs. Under the influence of Japanese prints, he often left large open areas in his pictures, relegating buildings to the edges.'

And also, regarding this work of De Nittis's, that a "cat left it's footprint just after the painter had finished and left the painting unattended for a moment."





'MUNICH.- The restorer of Gallery Daxer & Marschall in Munich made a remarkable discovery while cleaning a painting to be shown at TEFAF. The mark of a cat’s paw in the wet paint appeared in the sky of "La Strada di Brindisi" (1872) by the Italian impressionist Giuseppe de Nittis.
... “De Nittis is well known to have been a cat lover” commented the expert on the painter, Prof. Sperken, ... It is a preliminary study for the well known larger version “La Strada di Brindisi” in the Indianapolis Museum of Art. It is one of a group of exquisite plein air sketches by de Nittis all originating from the Dieterle collection, Paris.

'Giuseppe De Nittis is one of the most important Italian painters of the nineteenth century. He took up his studies at the Istituto di Belle Arti in Naples but early on abandoned the academic tradition of his training. He came into contact with the group of young Florentine painters known as the ‘Macchiaioli’. Following their example, he began to practice plein-air painting. He moved to Paris in 1868 and quickly made his name in artistic circles. In 1874, he participated in the first Impressionists exhibition staged in the Paris studio of the photographer Nadar. De Nittis was an influential figure in the world of art and letters. Independently wealthy, he acquired an elegant Paris residence which served as a popular meeting-place for artists and writers, particularly Degas, Manet, Daudet, Zola and the Goncourt brothers....'