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Open 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

National Gallery of Art

  • Visit

    • Plan Your Visit
    • Accessibility
    • Visiting with Kids
    • Food and Drink
    • Tours and Guides
    • Explore the Campus

    Open today 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
    Admission is always free

    6th and Constitution Ave NW 
    Washington, DC 20565

    Sculpture Garden Extended Hours

    Open late until 8:00 p.m. on select nights

    Through September 5

  • Exhibitions & Events

    • Exhibitions
    • Calendar
    • Kid-Friendly Events

    America’s 250th

    Celebrating American art and artists

  • Art & Artists

    • Artworks
    • Artists
    • Stories
    • Fun and Games
    • Educational Resources
    • Research

    Open Call

    Artists Reimagining the Collection

    Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

Utility

  • Support
  • Shop
  • Become a Member

  • Visit

    • Plan Your Visit
    • Accessibility
    • Visiting with Kids
    • Food and Drink
    • Tours and Guides
    • Explore the Campus

    Open today 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
    Admission is always free

    6th and Constitution Ave NW 
    Washington, DC 20565

    Sculpture Garden Extended Hours

    Open late until 8:00 p.m. on select nights

    Through September 5

  • Exhibitions & Events

    • Exhibitions
    • Calendar
    • Kid-Friendly Events

    America’s 250th

    Celebrating American art and artists

  • Art & Artists

    • Artworks
    • Artists
    • Stories
    • Fun and Games
    • Educational Resources
    • Research

    Open Call

    Artists Reimagining the Collection

    Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

Utility

  • Support
  • Shop
  • Become a Member

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  • Open 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
  • See extended hours

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    3. Pietro Magni

    Pietro Magni

    Italian, 1817 - 1877

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    Artwork

    Carved from white marble, a young woman sits turned to face the back of a wooden chair, where she props the open book she reads in this free-standing sculpture. In this photograph, her knees face us but her body and head are turned slightly to our left, toward the ladderback of the chair, so we see her face almost in profile as she looks down at the book. Her long hair is loosely tied back at the nape of her neck. She has a straight nose and her lips are closed. A delicate tear falls from her left eye, closer to us. A loose, short-sleeved garment falls open over her right shoulder so her breast is exposed. A medallion with a portrait of a man hangs from a long string around her neck. She holds the book open with her right hand, farther away from us, and her other hand rests in her lap. The book lies on more fabric bunching over the back of the chair. Her bare feet, crossed at the ankle, peek out from under her long garment so one foot extends beyond the edge of the marble base on which the chair rests.
    Pietro Magni, The Reading Girl (La Leggitrice), model 1856, carved 1861, marble, Patrons' Permanent Fund, 2003.84.1

    The Reading Girl (La Leggitrice)

    The Reading Girl (La Leggitrice)

    Pietro Magni · model 1856, carved 1861 · marble ·  Accession ID  2003.84.1

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      6th St and Constitution Ave NW
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      4th St and Constitution Ave NW
      Washington, DC 20565

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      7th St and Constitution Ave NW
      Washington, DC 20565

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