The Butcher

Lorenzo Delleani · 1881
Oil on panel
Rome, Italy - Galleria d’Arte Moderna
LDA · XXVI · MMXXV

Source
Book · Realismo e Verismo nella Pittura Italiana dell’Ottocento di Corrado Maltese · Fratelli Fabbri Editori · 1967 · p. 81

Delleani presents the figure of the butcher not as a narrative character but as an emblem of labour, framed by the carcass he has processed. The loose brushwork and restricted palette emphasise the physicality of the trade rather than anecdotal detail. The spatial compression between worker and animal remains foregrounded, placing the body of labour and the body of the slaughtered animal in direct visual proximity. The composition reflects late-19th-century interest in representing manual work with material immediacy rather than sentimental commentary. The absence of decorative context locates meaning solely in the act of labour.

Reposting welcome; please credit Libreria d’Arte - Studio Soli.

Detail
The hanging carcass - the exposed ribs and tensioned limbs underscore the economic function of slaughter rather than its violence, presenting the animal as processed commodity rather than narrative subject.