Biography
De Chirico (1888-1978) was born to Italian parents in Greece, and he developed an enduring fascination with classical subjects at an early age. He studied painting in Athens, Florence and Munich, where he was influenced by the Symbolists as well as the philosophy of Schopenhauer and Nietzsche – particularly the latter's belief that "underneath this reality in which we live and have our being, another and altogether different reality lies concealed".Between 1910 and 1917 he developed the 'Metaphysical' style for which he remains best known, using a figurative vocabulary to depict strangely unreal, dreamlike scenes set in deserted city squares or cramped interiors, containing apparently random collections of unrelated objects and looming, faceless mannequins. Such imagery exerted an enormous impact on the work of Carlo Carrà and the Surrealists.After 1919 de Chirico turned increasingly to more traditional modes of painting, studying Old Master techniques and producing work in a neo-Baroque style. He continued to create Metaphysical works intermittently throughout his career, but these later pieces lack the unsettling power of his earlier paintings.
Artworks in this collection
Exhibitions featuring Giorgio de Chirico
Artists in this the collection
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