Morbelli initially studied music, but had to abandon this because of increasing deafness and instead took up a fine art scholarship at the Accademia di Brera in Milan in 1876. In late 1902/early 1903 he set up a studio in the Pio Albergo Trivulzio in Milan, a rest home for the elderly and destitute, producing paintings on the theme of old age. I think the composition, with the figure dramatically cropped off at the left, making it totally anonymous, is very powerful.
I deliberately didn't crop this photo of the painting which shows it out of its frame because I was intrigued by its rather untidy corners of the canvas as well as a rack of paintings stored behind it. (The piece of card at the top with various blocks of color is used when printing the photo to ensure the colors in the painting are reproduced correctly.)
I deliberately didn't crop this photo of the painting which shows it out of its frame because I was intrigued by its rather untidy corners of the canvas as well as a rack of paintings stored behind it. (The piece of card at the top with various blocks of color is used when printing the photo to ensure the colors in the painting are reproduced correctly.)