The Estorick Collection of Modern Italian Art presents From Morandi to Guttuso, Masterpieces from the Alberto Della Ragione Collection. A selection of 40 pieces from Della Ragione's comprehensive library of Italian Modernist art will feature in the exhibition.
Alberto Della Ragione – A Passionate Collector
Alberto Della Ragione (1892-1973), a Genoese engineer, started collecting works of art in the mid-1920s. His early acquisitions included mainly 19th-century Italian paintings, but he soon turned to the Futurists, developing relationships with many artists associated with the movement.
By the mid-1930s his collection was growing rapidly and included twelve items by Arturo Tosi, eight by Giorgio de Chirico, six sculptures by Arturo Martini, and many others. Della Ragione later added works by Massimo Campigli and Giorgio Morandi, and at one time the collection included a self-portrait by Amedeo Modigliani, acquired with money intended for the purchase of an apartment!
From Morandi to Guttuso... – Highlights of the Exhibition
Highlights of the exhibition include Still Life (ca. 1937-38) by Giorgio Morandi (1890-1964). Nicknamed 'il monaco' (the monk) because of his reclusive lifestyle, Morandi is regarded by many as one of the finest 20th-century Italian artists. Morandi's still lifes featured mainly simple objects such as bottles, jugs and candlesticks. He was associated with the Scuola metafisica in 1918 (Metaphysical school formed by Giorgio De Chirico and Carlo Carrà), and later joined the Novecento group.
Another important piece is Scantily-dressed Women (ca. 1940) by Renato Guttuso (1911-1987). Originally enrolled at the University of Palermo to study law, Guttuso abandoned his studies in 1931 when his career as an artist became established. He was a leading exponent of Social Realism, but refused to subordinate artistic quality to political propaganda. Guttuso was a co-founder of Fronte Nuovo delle Arte and a founder member of the anti-Fascist association Corrente. Guttuso recently featured in another exhibition at the Estorick entitled Against Mussolini. Guttuso received the Lenin Prize for Peace in 1972.
The exhibition also features Les bains mystérieux (ca.1934-36) by Giorgio de Chirico (1888-1966), co-founder of the short-lived Scuola metafisica with Carlo Carrà whom he had met during the First World War. The style is characterised by a sense of mystery and hallucination.
The display includes Window with Pigeons (ca. 1930-31) by Gino Severini (1883-1966). Severini, whose work recently featured in an exhibition at Tate Modern, was a leading member of the Futurists, a group established by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti. Severini was one of the original signatories of the Futurist Manifesto of 1910. For a time he was associated with the Cubists but later turned to representational painting.
Della Ragione's collection includes many sculptures such as The Pisan Girl (ca. 1932-33), a sculpture in terracotta by the self-taught Arturo Martini (1890-1947). Martini trained as a goldsmith and a ceramist before taking up sculpture in 1906.
From Morandi to Guttuso – Exhibition Catalogue
The exhibition is supported by a fully-illustrated catalogue featuring contributions by Roberta Cremoncini, Director of the Estorick Collection and Laura Lucchesi, Curator at the Civici Musei e Chiese, Florence.
From Morandi to Guttuso – Masterpieces from the Alberto Della Ragione Collection will be on display from 12th January to 3rd April 2011. Further information is available from the Estorick Collection.
Frances Spiegel - Frances Spiegel, B.A. Hons. (Open)., Dip.Eur.Hum., read Art History/European Modern History at the Open University.
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