Italian school; 17th century."Old woman".Oil on canvas. Re-coloured.It presents restorations.Measurements: 105 x 83 cm; 121 x 99 cm (frame).Scene of marked realism in which the author presents us a stark portrait wrapped in the half-light, in which the body of an old woman stands out. The clothes of the protagonist, torn in the skirt area, together with the humility of the fabrics, indicate that she belongs to a lower social class. As a model taken from the streets, the artist has sacralised the figure of a peasant woman, turning her into the protagonist of a rough, stark painting that appeals to the viewer and confronts him with a reality that is usually overlooked. The woman is portrayed alone, without any distracting element, and the portrait thus acquires a great psychological depth, which is reinforced by the gestures of the face and body, with the old woman looking tired but at the same time expectant to the scrutiny of the viewer's gaze.During the 17th century, the depictions of the most underprivileged classes of society (beggars, beggars, peasants, dwarves and vagabonds) and of the humblest trades, depicted with great dignity and realism, were particularly valued. This trend spread to all artistic fields, and 17th-century painting reflected the idiosyncrasy of the Baroque, celebrated through opposites, which brought together in the same space the most prominent personalities of the time and the lower classes.