Portrait of the Brother of the Painter Micheli

Amedeo Modigliani produced this portrait around 1899 while studying under Guglielmo Micheli in Livorno. The subject was Micheli's brother, painted during Modigliani's earliest artistic training. At the time, the young Italian artist was learning from a master trained in the Macchiaioli tradition, the Italian equivalent of Impressionism.

This work represents one of Modigliani's first documented paintings, created years before he would develop his signature elongated figures and almond-shaped eyes. The academic approach visible here contrasts sharply with the boldly stylized Expressionist portraits that would later make him famous. Modigliani was only about fourteen years old when he painted this, demonstrating precocious technical ability even at such a young age.