The Bad Mothers

A woman hangs from the bare tree, as if it had captured her. Her body merges with the branches, her hair blowing through the foliage, whilst an infant reaches for her breast. All around, nothing but snow; a flat plain stretching to the horizon, beyond which lies a mountain ridge shrouded in a violet haze. The sky is a pale pink and yellow; to the left, more scrub rises from the white. Segantini painted ‘The Bad Mothers’ in 1894, based on a legend about women who refused motherhood and were condemned to atone for it in an icy limbo. It is precisely this contrast that underpins the painting: an almost tranquil winter landscape, within which lies a motif of great harshness. Particularly striking is the connection between the body and the tree, almost like a prison, whilst the child appears to represent both accusation and redemption. The work is regarded as a masterpiece of European Symbolism; the original hangs in the Belvedere in Vienna. Segantini’s brushwork lays the colours side by side in fine parallel strands, causing even the snow to shimmer - as you look at it, your gaze keeps returning to individual lines.

This reproduction measures 68 x 35 cm and hangs unframed on the wall, which suits the subject well. The pale shades of pink and lilac extend over the mirrored edges and almost dissolve into the white wall - the snowy landscape finds its own continuation there. The satin-finished Leonardo canvas shimmers slightly; that is all that is needed here. It is striking how faithfully the reproduction captures Segantini’s brushstrokes: in the mountain range, the violet and ochre lines remain individually discernible, and even the woman’s flowing hair does not blend into a flat expanse. Everything in this painter’s work depends on this sharpness of line, and it is certainly present here. On the reverse is a serrated hanging loop.