Giorgio Morandi

(Italy 20 Jul 1890–18 Jun 1964)

Title

Still life

Alternative title:

Natura morta

Year

1957

Media category

Painting

Materials used

oil on canvas

Dimensions

35.4 x 40.9cm stretcher; 61.5 x 67.0 x 5.0cm frame

Signature & date

Signed u.r., grey oil "Morandi". Not dated.

Credit

Purchased with assistance from the Margaret Hannah Olley Art Trust 1997

Accession number

431.1997

Copyright

Location

Modern gallery

Further information

A reticent and quiet man who eschewed the successive fashions of European modernism, Morandi devoted his artistic career to the unhurried contemplation of the objects and landscapes of his native Bologna. The objects he painted and drew were invariably prosaic. Morandi gathered them together into intimate clusters. An unerring judge of proportion, he imbued these compositions with an extraordinary sense of unity, realising the lyric possibilities of his objects through subtle intervals of colour, tone and space. The familiar forms of jars and pots are simplified, yet their essential qualities seem to be heightened. In this way Morandi suggests an abstract monumentality: a characteristic associated with metaphysical painting. The classic composure of Morandi's work depends on a technique that leaves nothing to chance or improvisation.

Art Gallery Handbook, 1999.

Provenance (10)

Galleria della Scudo (Italy), Verona/Italy, Purchased by the AGNSW from Galleria della Scudo 1997

Addison Ltd. (Monaco), Monaco

Galleria della Scudo (Italy), Verona/Italy, Acquired from Verrando in the mid 1980s.

Giovanni Battista Verrando (Italy), Verona/Italy, After Cesare Tosi died the painting passed through many collections ending up in the collection of Giovanni Battista Verrando by 1983. Listed in Vitali, no.1050, as collection Giovanni Battista Verrando

Galleria Lorenzelli (Italy), Milan/Italy, label verso, Galleria Lorenzelli Milano / Mostra Maggini Morandi / Dicembre 1962

Cesare Tosi (Italy), Milan/Italy, Sold to Cesare Tosi in the late 1950s

Galleria Odyssia, Rome (Italy), Rome/Italy

N Mobilio (Italy), Florence/Italy

Galleria Falsetti (Italy), Prato/Italy

Gino Ghiringhelli (Italy), Milan/Italy, Owner of the Galleria del Milione in Milan, Ghiringhelli acquired the painting directly from Morandi.

Bibliography (8)

John Berger, Art Monthly Australia Sep 2000, 'How is it there? An open letter to Marisa', pg. 15-20, Acton, Sep 2000, 19 (illus.).

Edmund Capon, Art Gallery of New South Wales Annual Report 1998 1998, 'Director's Statement', pg. 7-8, Domain, 1998, 7 (colour illus.).

Bruce James, Art Gallery of New South Wales handbook, 'Western Collection: Paintings and Sculpture', pg. 17-77, Domain, 1999, 67 (colour illus.).

Lou Klepac (Curator) and The Beagle Press (Assistant Editor), Giorgio Morandi: The dimension of inner space 1997, Domain, 1997, 58 (colour illus.). plate no. 28

Margaret Olley and Barry Humphries, Favourites: Margaret Olley and Barry Humphries choose from public and private collections 2000, Sydney, 2000. Catalogue entry appears in inserted list to printed catalogue

Wendy Symonds (Editor), Look Apr 1998, 'The Timelessness of Giorgio Morandi - 'Still Life' (1957)', pg. 13, Heidelberg, Apr 1998, 13 (colour illus.).

Lamberto Vitali, Morandi: catalogo generale, Milan, 1983, (illus.). cat.no. 1050, collection Giovanni Battista Verrando

Author Unknown, Giorgio Morandi the master of 20th century Italian painting 1997, Domain, 1997, back cover (colour illus.).

Exhibition history (5)

Morandi, Galleria Lorenzelli, Italy, Dec 1962–Dec 1962

Omaggio a Giorgio Morandi, Centro d'Arte Dolomiti, Italy, 24 Dec 1969–10 Jan 1970

Giorgio Morandi: The dimension of inner space, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 09 May 1997–13 Jul 1997

Favourites: Margaret Olley and Barry Humphries choose from Australian collections (2000), S.H. Ervin Gallery, Sydney, 15 Jan 2000–27 Feb 2000

Less is more: Giorgio Morandi and Gwyn Hanssen Pigott, Newcastle Region Art Gallery, Newcastle, 05 Mar 2011–08 May 2011