Piazza d'Italia by Giorgio de Chirico

View Similar Items

Rafael Duran Benet - Spain oil painting landscape with lake spanish

Unknown - 'View of San Francisco with Coit Tower', Bay Area, California, Pointillist Oil

Helen Hafer - 'California Cove, Orange County', Laguna Beach Art Association, Chouinard

Pieter Smoor - 'Iglesia San Antonio', Bay Area Abstraction, Mendocino Art Center, San Diego

Josine Vignon - Provence Landscape Of Scattered Olive Trees Post Impressionist Signed Oil 1960's

Nadezda Stupina - "Small hotel In Alps" Original impressionistic landscape. France.Oil painting

Nadezda Stupina - "Аlpine motif" Original impressionistic landscape . France. Oil painting

Josine Vignon - Cagnes Sur Mer Old Town Overlooking Sea French Post Impressionist

Josine Vignon - Olive Trees in Provence French Post Impressionist Signed Oil 1960's

Josine Vignon - Olive Groves in Provence Village French Post Impressionist Signed Oil 1960's

Jane Chenoweth - 'Field of Wild Poppies', American Impressionist, Woman Artist, Horticultural Oil

Nadezda Stupina - "Morning of Old Nice" Original impressionistic landscape. Oil painting. City

Want more images or videos?

Request additional images or videos from the seller

1 of 10

Giorgio De Chirico
Piazza d'Italia by Giorgio de Chirico
1952

Name: Piazza d'Italia by Giorgio de Chirico
Brand: Giorgio De Chirico
Rating: 5 (4 reviews)

About the Item

Giorgio de Chirico 1888-1978 Italian Piazza d'Italia Oil on canvas Signed and dated “g. de Chircio” (lower left); Signed and inscribed "Questa “Piazza d’Italia” è opera autentica in fede Giorgio de Chirico" (en verso) Giorgio de Chirico’s position within 20th-century art is of immeasurable importance, and his influence remains as strong today as it was during his lifetime. In founding the Scuola Metafisica (the Metaphysical School) of painting, he created one of the most intriguing, enigmatic and memorable art movements in history. He is considered the harbinger of Surrealism, and his visionary work had a profound impact on the leaders of that movement — Salvador Dalí, Andre Breton, René Magritte and others. Interest in de Chirico never seems to wane, and incredibly, there have been over 700 public exhibitions of the artist’s work. Essentially inventing a new visual language, de Chirico’s works are uniquely engaging and stand as one of the great triumphs of Modernism. The present work is a truly spectacular and thought-provoking example from the artist that embodies his singular aesthetic and centers around his favorite and most recognizable subject. This painting, entitled Piazza d'Italia, presents a subject that inspired de Chirico throughout his long and successful career: a hauntingly empty Italian town square cast in dramatic shadow. The palette is rich and engaging, commanding the viewer's attention and compelling closer study. The piazza d’Italia stands as his most iconic motif, and the imagery has come to represent his lifelong fascination with the mysteries of the mind and philosophical discovery inspired by his study of Frederic Nietzsche’s famed writings. In Piazza d'Italia, de Chirico expertly demonstrates the tenets of the metaphysical art he pioneered. The scene is at the same time familiar and otherworldly — based in reality but deeply mysterious. We immediately recognize an urban landscape that exists in our world, but this space comes with a sense of unease and distortion. The architecture mimics the classical Roman arcade, yet it is rendered with a strange perspective, receding too sharply into the distance. De Chirico combines familiar elements (a train, a tower, two figures in conversation) to uncanny effect, inviting the viewer to experience the painting. Perhaps the most unusual aspect of the composition is the almost complete lack of people, and the figures that do appear have a mysterious quality about them. They are completely still, dwarfed by the surrounding architecture and vast sky. Who are they, and what are they discussing? Most interestingly, the sculpted figure of the mythical Ariadne reclines at the center of the piazza, enveloped in the bright Mediterranean sun. De Chirico was raised in Athens, Greece, and the classics had a major influence on his style. The artist was drawn in particular to the myth of Ariadne, who repeatedly appears in his piazza scenes. Ariadne was the Cretan princess who helped Theseus slay the Minotaur in the Labyrinth. After their escape, Theseus seduced Ariadne on the island of Naxos and abandoned her there. It is this moment that captivated de Chirico. Using as reference one of the most celebrated sculptures from antiquity, the Sleeping Ariadne, now housed in the Vatican, Ariadne is depicted here in her slumber, long shadows creeping towards her. She is still unaware that her companion has left her, caught in a moment between love and loss. Ariadne’s slumber provides her a retreat from the reality of her abandonment, but it also provides de Chirico a retreat into the classical past of his childhood. De Chirico also spent time in the cities of Turin and Milan when he was first beginning to paint his metaphysical piazze. He considered Turin an especially metaphysical Italian city, possessing a “strange and profound poetry." These Italian cities inspired de Chirico to juxtapose their classical past with ideas of modern life, subverting the viewers’ expectations of such a familiar scene. A train, a metaphor for industry and modernity, sits still in the background, neither coming nor going. Buildings built to be inhabited sit empty, pointing perhaps to his own feelings of unease as cities modernized in the 20th century. In this way, de Chirico makes it possible to see the mundane from a strange new perspective. Examples of de Chirico’s enigmatic piazze are found in important museums across the globe, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), the Museum of Modern Art (New York), the Art Institute of Chicago, Musée d’art moderne (Paris) and many more. The present work is of particular importance within scholarship on de Chirico, having been exhibited across Europe and the U.S. and appearing on the covers of several publications on the artist. De Chirico’s works have performed well at auction in recent years, with a depiction of Ariadne selling at Sotheby’s auction for an astounding $15,890,400 in October 2020. De Chirico is a master at leaving the viewer with more questions than answers, and because of this, his paintings never grow boring. Piazza d'Italia stands as one of de Chirico's most compelling creations. Painted in 1952 Canvas: 22 3/4" high x 17 1/2" wide Frame: 23 3/4" high x 28 3/4" wide Literature and Exhibitions: C. Bruni Sakraischik, Giorgio de Chirico Catalogo generale, Milan 1973, vol. VIII, n. 1168, illustrated Sguardi Sul Novecento. Collezionismo privato tra gusto e tendenza, by Annalisa Scarpa, 27 June - 30 September 2012, Bordighera, Villa Regina Margherita, pag. 36 Novecento Italiano. Passione e Collezionismo, 20 October 2012 - 30 January 2013, Bassano Del Grappa, Museo Civico, by Giuliana Ericani, Annalisa Scarpa, pag. 45, 116 De Chirico - De Pisis. La Mente Altrove, by Antonio D’Amico, Domodossola, Palazzo San Francesco, 14 July - 31 October 2018, cat. 32 (and illustrated on the cover) C. Tugnoli, Filosofia del tempo e significato della storia, Trento, 2020 (cover)

Creator:
Giorgio De Chirico (1888-1978, Italian)
Creation Year:
1952
Dimensions:
Height: 23.75 in (60.33 cm)Width: 28.75 in (73.03 cm)Depth: 2.75 in (6.99 cm)
Medium:
Canvas,Oil
Movement & Style:
Post-Impressionist
Period:
20th Century
Condition:
Gallery Location:
New Orleans, LA
Reference Number:
Seller: 31-56651stDibs: LU18610686642

Shop All Giorgio De Chirico

Giorgio De Chirico

The progenitor of metaphysical painting — a dreamlike, realist style embracing sharp contrasts, sculpted forms and odd juxtapositions — Giorgio De Chirico profoundly influenced many Surrealist artists of his time. His early sculptures and paintings explored the complexities of the mind and reflected his affinity for contemporary European philosophy and Freudian psychoanalysis. Even though the metaphysical movement lasted only a brief time, he left a strong impression on such legendary surrealists as Salvador Dalí, René Magritte and André Breton.

De Chirico was born in Volos, Greece, to Italian parents. His father was a Sicilian baron and engineer in charge of constructing a railroad in Greece at the time of his son’s birth. In his late teens, De Chirico studied art at various institutions in Athens and Florence. After his father died, in 1905, he enrolled in the Munich Academy of Fine Arts. Here, he discovered the writings of Friedrich Nietzsche and Arthur Schopenhauer that would help to shape his future works.

In 1909, De Chirico moved to Milan and then to Florence a year later, where he began experimenting with what would become his metaphysical style. After moving again, this time to Paris in 1911, his brother Alberto Savinio helped him get several small exhibitions of his work that eventually were noticed by Pablo Picasso and the poet Guillaume Apollinaire — and his paintings began to sell.

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Willy Schlobach
Les Falaises By Willy Schlobach, 1907

$98,500

Le Château D’Artigny By Ramon Dilley

Located in New Orleans, LA

Ramon Dilley 1933 - Spanish Le château d’Artigny Signed “Dilley 90” (lower right) Signed and titled “Ramon Dilley / Le château d’Artigny” (en verso) Oi...

Category

20th Century Post-Impressionist Landscape Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Ramon Dilley
Le Château D’Artigny By Ramon Dilley, 1990

$34,500

Early 2000s Post-Impressionist Landscape Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Board

$1,265

"Small hotel In Alps" Original impressionistic landscape. France.Oil painting

Located in Oslo, NO

In this artwork, I've conjured the serene embrace of the Alps, capturing the quaint essence of a secluded retreat. My strokes in acrylic and oil meld in an impressionistic dance, cre...

Category