This is an absolutely stunning pastel entitled "3:30 Horse Race Cheltenham" signed by the Artist Franco Matania in the bottom left hand corner. The painting depicts five horses and jockeys racing to the finish line by Franco Matania, who was of Italian origin. He was a pupil of his uncle, the distinguished artist and illustrator Fortunino Matania RI (1881-1963). They were both competant in all media, though mainly in Conté and Pastel. Franco Matania was a member of the United Society of Artists, the Society of Graphic Fine Art and Associate of the Society of Equestrian Artists. 1st prize Pastel Award Mall Galleries 1984. Society of Equestrian Artists Awards Mall Galleries 1986 and Westminster Galleries 1988. Works accepted 1960-88: RI Galleries, ROI, RA, Pastel Society, National Society, Graphic Society, and Equestrian Society. It is an impressive and beautifully executed pastel set in a decorative gilded and red lacquer frame. Condition: In excellent condition. Dimensions in cm: Height 61 x Width 72 - Frame Height 38 x Width 49 - painting Dimensions in inches: Height 2 feet, 0 inches x Width 2 feet, 4 inches - Frame Height 1 foot, 3 inches x Width 1 foot, 7 inches - painting Pastels. The manufacture of pastels originated in the 15th century.[6] The pastel medium was mentioned by Leonardo da Vinci, who learned of it from the French artist Jean Perréal after that artist's arrival in Milan in 1499. Pastel was sometimes used as a medium for preparatory studies by 16th-century artists, notably Federico Barocci. The first French artist to specialize in pastel portraits was Joseph Vivien. During the 18th century the medium became fashionable for portrait painting, sometimes in a mixed technique with gouache. Pastel was an important medium for artists such as Jean-Baptiste Perronneau, Maurice Quentin de La Tour (who never painted in oils), and Rosalba Carriera. The pastel still life paintings and portraits of Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin are much admired, as are the works of the Swiss-French artist Jean-Étienne Liotard. In 18th-century England the outstanding practitioner was John Russell. In Colonial America, John Singleton Copleyused pastel occasionally for portraits. In France, pastel briefly became unpopular during and after the Revolution, as the medium was identified with the frivolity of the Ancien Régime. By the mid-19th century, French artists such as Eugène Delacroix and especially Jean-François Millet were again making significant use of pastel. Their countryman Édouard Manet painted a number of portraits in pastel on canvas, an unconventional ground for the medium.Edgar Degas was an innovator in pastel technique, and used it with an almost expressionist vigor after about 1885, when it became his primary medium. Odilon Redon produced a large body of works in pastel. James Abbott McNeill Whistler produced a quantity of pastels around 1880, including a body of work relating to Venice, and this probably contributed to a growing enthusiasm for the medium in the United States. In particular, he demonstrated how few strokes were required to evoke a place or an atmosphere. Mary Cassatt, an American artist active in France, introduced the Impressionists and pastel to her friends in Philadelphia and Washington. In the United States, the Society of Painters in Pastel was founded in 1885. The Pastellists, led by Leon Dabo, organized in New York in 1910. Pastels have been favored by many modern artists because of the medium's broad range of bright colors. Modern notable artists who have worked extensively in pastels include Fernando Botero, Francesco Clemente, Daniel Greene, Wolf Kahn, and R. B. Kitaj. Our reference: 06693 Please feel free to email or call us (+44 20 8809 9605) to arrange a viewing in our North London warehouse. Shipping: We ship worldwide and deliver to Mainland UK addresses free of charge. A shipping cost to all other destinations must be requested prior to purchase. To request a shipping quote for the items in your cart, please click HERE. Delivery and return policy: We require that someone be home on the agreed delivery day if applicable, otherwise a redelivery fee will apply. In accordance with Distance Selling Regulations, we offer a 14-day money back guarantee if you are not satisfied with the item. The item must be returned in its original packaging and condition. Unless the item is not as described in a material way, the buyer is responsible for return shipping expenses. Buyers are fully responsible for any customs duties or local taxes that may be incurred on items sent outside of the European Union.