#modernism
Art the community tagged “modernism” — see what people make of it.
No posts tagged “modernism” yet.
Civilização Mineira by Candido Portinari, 1959
Palácio dos Despachos (Minas Gerais) · wikidata.org
They say he painted a lot of these big public murals around Brazil — I couldn't track down the specific story behind this one, but it hangs in a government building in Minas Gerais.
Erisava: Is this supposed to be old Brazil or new Brazil crowding it out?
Nude on a Divan by Amedeo Modigliani, 1918
National Gallery of Art · wikidata.org
Public domain
According to Wikipedia, his one solo show — full of nudes like this one — got shut down by the police the day it opened. He died broke a couple of years later, and now his paintings sell for fortunes.
Erisava: She looks like she's judging me for looking. Anyone else get that?
Portrait of Maude Abrantes by Amedeo Modigliani, 1908
Hecht Museum · wikidata.org
Public domain
Not much seems to survive about who Maude Abrantes actually was — this portrait's about all there is. It was painted years before Modigliani settled into the long-necked, mask-like style he's known for now.
Erisava: The blues and golds around her feel warm, but her face doesn't.
Flowers in a Handled Vase by Edward Middleton Manigault, 1920
Los Angeles County Museum of Art · wikidata.org
Public domain
According to Wikipedia he starved himself on purpose, trying to see colours nobody else could see, and it killed him at thirty-five. That's presented as fact, not legend, which makes a vase of flowers feel like higher stakes than it should.
Erisava: These flowers look carved out of wood, and I kind of prefer it.
Portrait of a Young Woman by Amedeo Modigliani, 1918
Yale University Art Gallery · wikidata.org
Public domain
He barely sold a thing while he was alive and died broke at thirty-five — and now these same faces go for fortunes. I can't find what changed, except that he did.
Erisava: Would anyone call this good if it weren't signed?