GIORGIO MORANDI | Natura morta

Collezione P. Manzù, Bergamo
Galleria Borgogna, Milano
Fischer Fine Art Ltd., Londra
Galleria Gissi, Torino
Tornabuoni Arte, Firenze, Londra, Parigi
Ivi acquistato dall’attuale proprietario nel 1987-88 circa

Lamberto Vitali, Morandi. Catalogo generale. Volume secondo 1948/1964, Milano 1977, n. 1131, illustrato

A professional condition report is available upon request at the department.
"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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Siamo davanti a un’esile e monumentale presenza di una vita ormai consunta dall’inesorabile avvicendarsi delle stagioni. Tutto è silenzio, le ombre si allungano, non vi è che quiete. Ai nostri occhi appare un concreto pari al miraggio, un memento mori che è comunque simbolo e rappresentazione d’esistenza.
“Ore che passavano lente, interminabili, con lo sguardo rivolto alla porta dello studio come se da un momento all’altro dovessero apparire i fantasmi di un archivio (…) chiudere gli occhi e scoprire l’universo nella polvere che si adagia sulle cose, in una bottiglia, in un barattolo o nelle nervature di una foglia. Ore e giorni da trascorrere in un’attesa inutile e tormentosa. (…) Morandi voleva tornare, almeno per qualche momento, nella sua vecchia stanza, in quel laboratorio della solitudine che l’aveva visto lavorare per cinquant’anni. Sul cavalletto c’era sempre la sua ultima natura morta, su un ripiano i tre oggetti erano ancora in posa” (Franco Basile).
Una coltre polverosa avvolge lo spazio, che si impone netto e deciso, crudo e vero, con una forza estremamente neorealista. L’opacità del dipinto rende visibile, comprensibile e possibile la realtà, la fa nostra, la rende autentica.
La composizione è raccolta, intima, umile. Nei nostri cuori echeggia un sentimento nostalgico, forse di qualcosa mai posseduto, ma eternamente desiderato e perso. We are before a thin and monumental presence of a life now worn out by the inexorable change of seasons. All is silence, the shadows grow longer, there is nothing but stillness. A concrete equal to the mirage appears, a memento mori that is still a symbol and representation of existence.
"Hours that passed slowly, interminably, with his gaze turned to the door of the studio as if at any moment the ghosts of the archive must appear (...) close your eyes and discover the universe in the dust that lies on top of things, in a bottle, in a jar or in the fibres of a leaf. Hours and days spent waiting uselessly in torment. (...) Morandi wanted to return, at least for a few moments, to his old room, in that laboratory of solitude that had seen him work for fifty years. On the easel there was his last still life, on a shelf the three objects were still in position."Franco Basile
A dusty blanket envelops the space, which imposes itself sharp and decisive, raw and verisimiltudinous, with a neorealistic force. The opacity of the painting makes reality visible, understandable and possible, makes it ours, makes it authentic.
The composition is intimate and humble. A nostalgic feeling echoes in our hearts, perhaps something that we have never possessed, but that we have eternally desired and lost.