Giorgio Morandi

Galleria del Milione, Milan

Herbert C. Morris, Bryn Mawr (in 1965)

Private Collection, France

MDG Fine Arts Ltd., London

Acquired from the above by the present owner

Lamberto Vitali, Morandi, Dipinti, catalogo generale, volume primo, 1948/1964, Milan, 1994, no. 1302, illustrated

Original canvas. No retouching visible under UV light. This work is in excellent condition. The catalogue illustration has a yellow-brown cast that is not an accurate representation of the actual painting, which is much fresher in tone.
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Giorgio Morandi's meticulously composed still-lifes were the dominant theme of his career. Like others of his generation, he looked at the Italian art of the early Renaissance with fresh eyes, simultaneously conscious of the legacy of tradition as well as the regional and rustic aspects of the Italian cultural heritage. Additionally vital was the legacy of Cézanne, whose intense focus on reality and individual way of seeing encouraged Morandi to discover the simple geometric solidity of everyday objects. This was to become his subject, although his style moved through several very distinct phases. The objects, invariably household items such as bottles, jars, pitchers and bowls, were laid out with the calculated precision of a classical composition, yet the way in which they are painted establishes their presence as self-contained forms in space.

The present work is a clear example of Morandi's visual poetry.  The beautiful stillness of these bottles and jars, arranged in an orderly cluster on the table, invoke a meditative quality that one could easily describe as pure Zen.