Paris's glittering high society at the turn of the last century is the focus of a new exhibit, exploring the work of three artists that came to typify the Belle Epoque .
The show features around 70 pieces by Giovanni Boldini, an Italian artist who moved to Paris at the age of 30, and his two close friends, Paul Cesar Helleu and Georges Goursat, who was known as Sem .
Divided into six sections, the exhibition highlights the complexity of relations between art and society, typical of Paris during that era .
It also draws out links between the work of the three artists, introduced by the art critic and poet Robert de Montesquie, who became firm friends, despite the differences in their age, background, styles and training .
While the work of all three focused on Parisian high society, particularly its fashion and women, they approached their subject matters in very different ways .
Boldini gained international renown for his fashion and portrait paintings, Sem focused on caricatures and newspaper illustrations, while Helleu's drypoint etchings and pastel portraits were closer to sketches .
The show features a number of famous works, mainly by Boldini, who was the best known of the three .
These include his portraits of Donna Franco Florio, considered the most beautiful woman in Italy, Giuseppe Verdi and Sem himself .
There is also an extensive selection of lesser-known paintings by Boldini. Somewhat neglected in recent years, Boldini was hugely popular in turn-of-the-century Paris, capturing the lifestyle and faces of the era's fashionable celebrities in numerous portraits and cityscapes .
He started out with small-scale works, concentrating on scenes of city life and elegantly dressed women but quickly rose to prominence in Parisian art circles .
He began to paint society portraits and developed a reputation for his elegant depictions of fashionable society women .
Although mixing in similar circles and winning popularity among Parisian aristocrats, Helleu was less widely known than Boldini .
The exhibit shows a development from his early work, in which he painted churches and cathedrals, through a series of seascapes, and eventually on to his portraits .
The show offers a careful selection of Sem's work as an illustrator and charts his movement onto caricatures of Parisian high society .
A cynical observer of life, his work drew out the frivolity and worldliness of the Belle Epoque, capturing the essence of a wide array of characters, from society matrons, to famous entertainers and bookmakers .
Boldini, Helleu, Sem - Protagonisti e Miti della Belle Epoque (Boldini, Helleu, Sem - The Protagonists And Myths Of The Belle Epoque) runs in the Castello Pasquini until November 12 .
