Giorgio de Chirico

Piero Dorazio, Italy
Marlborough Fine Art Ltd., New York
Acquired from the above by the family of the present owner in 1966

Hanover, Kestner-Gesellschaft, Europäischer Surrealismus - phantastische und visionäre Bereiche, 1969
Hanover, Kestner-Gesellschaft, Giorgio de Chirico, 1970, no. 19, illustrated in colour in the catalogue
Winterthur, Kunstmuseum, Giorgio de Chirico in Schweizer Sammlungen: Werke 1909-1971, 2008

Maurizio Fagiolo dell'Arco, I Bagni Misteriosi, De Chirico negli anni trenta: Parigi, Italia, New York, Milan, 1991, illustrated p. 333

The canvas is lined. The painting is difficult to read under UV light because of the uneven fluorescence of the varnish layer. There is no evidence of retouching visible under UV light. There are a few deposit spots and fly spots to the surface, mainly in the tower. There are some slightly raised areas of craquelure, which are stable, in particular, an area to the upper left of the tower in the sky which would appear to be pentimenti. This work is in good condition.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
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As the sole compositional element in the present painting, the bold form of a tower, flanked by two empty buildings and elevated in its grandeur, dominates the canvas. Painted in De Chirico's signature metaphysical style of his more mature period and imbued with a solemn and uncanny quality, the painter adopts this central motif as a symbolic element of artistic and spiritual growth. This iconography was a recurrent theme in the artist's œuvre and is echoed in De Chirico's Nostalgia dell'Infinito dated 1913 (The Museum of Modern Art, New York) in its persistent play of perspective and shadow. Reinstating the verticality of the tower, the vertical format of the canvas heightens the sense of continuity and elevation. Through such imagery, the painter creates a link between the mundane everyday and the higher realm of artistic creation, one where he considered himself in his personal artistic struggle a pictor optimus; the 'best painter'.

Combined in the iconography of the imagery are two distinct spheres: the past, conveyed through the artist's fascination for ancient Greece through the use of white columns, referencing his formal academic training in Athens, and the present: through the influence of modern Italian cities such as Ferrara and Turin. Observing spatial and architectural constructions, both cities provided the scenic backdrop and inspiration for many of the De Chirico's works. Of Turin, De Chirico commented: 'it is the deepest, most enigmatic, most alarming city, not just of Italy, but of the whole world' (quoted in M. Fagiolo dell'Arco, de Chirico: gli anni Trenta, Milan, 1996, p. 138). The enigmatic quality sought by De Chirico is reflected in the form of the tower; a Classical trope suspended in a timeless setting.

As De Chirico declared: '[My art is a] frightening astuteness, it returns from beyond unexplored horizons to fix itself in metaphysical eternity, in the terrible solitude of an inexplicable lyricism' (quoted in P. Baldacci, De Chirico, The Metaphysical Period 1888-1919, Milan, 1997, p. 326). It is the very solitary element of his work, a tower absent of any human vestiges and highly dramatised through the choice of a sombre palette and controlled brushstrokes, that became so characteristic of his most recognizable works. The artist completely subverts any temporal reference, the light coming from the upper right foreground is contrasted with the dark deep background. The presence of the floating flags is the only element suggesting the wind's external presence. By contrast, the lower background carefully blends yellow and green tones seeming to suggest the rising or setting of the sun. In such a way, De Chirico conceptually gives a second identity to architectural structures and objects creating icons of the everyday world, embuing them with a spectral and metaphysical presence that so fascinated the French Surrealists.