Natura Morta (Still Life)

Giorgio Morandi

Natura Morta (Still Life)

Oil on Canvas, Painting

30.50 x 30.60 cm

1956

            "It takes me weeks to make up my mind which group of bottles will go well with a particular colored tablecloth......Then it takes me weeks of thinking about the bottles themselves, and yet often I still go wrong with the spaces. Perhaps I work too fast?" –Giorgio Morandi

Giorgio Morandi (1890-1964) was one of those painters who, at first glance, seem to defy categorization. He was nicknamed ‘il monaco’ (the monk) due to his reclusive lifestyle. Morandi spent most of his life in his native town of Bologna, both living and painting in his flat, and seldom venturing far afield. This gave rise to his initial reputation as a provincial artist, but the obvious quality of his paintings gradually forced a reappraisal of his work and established him as one of the best modern Italian painters and the greatest master of Natura Morta (still life) in the 20th century.

Morandi deliberately limited his choice of still life objects to the unremarkable bottles, boxes, jars, jugs and vases that were commonly found in his everyday domestic environment. He would then 'depersonalize' these objects by removing their labels and painting them with a flat matt color to eliminate any lettering or reflections. In this condition they provided him with an anonymous cast of ready-made forms that he could arrange and rearrange to explore their abstract qualities and relationships. Morandi's compositions and choice of still life’s objects allude to his Italian heritage. When assembled together in a still life group, his dusty bottles and boxes take on a monumental quality that evokes the architecture of medieval Italy - a style with which he seems at ease. Morandi always looked at his still life objects as if he was seeing them for the first time. He slowly contemplated each object, profoundly searching for its visual dynamic within the still life group. When satisfied with an arrangement, he would draw around the bases of the objects to finalize their positions. It is this intensity of contemplation and observation that gives a freshness and individuality to Morandi's painting.

This piece is quite different from the others in terms of content, or lack thereof. This piece was actually chosen for that reason, it makes the viewer pause and question the painter’s purpose. In this piece, the color and blended stokes make the viewer pause and slow down almost unintentionally. That is what is so unique and beautiful about the piece, it has taken things from everyday life and made them less fast-paced. The painting has a tranquil sense to it, and therefore the piece was chosen simply because it is a still life that has a huge impact on the viewer. There is simplicity and peace in this one painting, unlike any other around it and thus is uniquely beautiful for that.