Modigliani, Amedeo (1884-1920)
Léopold Zborowski
1916–1919
Oil on canvas, 100 x 65 cm
Museu de Arte, São Paulo
Before moving to Paris in 1906, Modigliani studied in the academies of Florence and Venice, in Italy. In the French capital, he lived in the district of Montmartre, which was also home to many other artists including Pablo Picasso (1881–1973), whom Modigliani became friends with. In 1909, he met Romanian sculptor Constantin Brancusi (1876–1957), an influence that led him to dedicate himself exclusively to sculpture until 1914, when he returned to painting. Modigliani was an alcoholic who lived in poverty, dying at the age of 36 from consumptive meningitis. In the context of the School of Paris, he developed a style that refers to cubism, with figures that tend toward geometric stylization, as in the faces of African masks. His characters also bear a melancholy that recalls Italian Renaissance madonnas. His portraits and nudes are painted on neutral, nearly monochromatic backgrounds, though marked by brushstrokes. The necks are elongated, the faces elliptical, and the lines delicate. MASP has six paintings by the artist, all made between 1915 and 1919. They include Portrait of Leopold Zborowski, a Polish poet who moved to Paris and later became Modigliani’s art dealer and friend.
See also:
• Léopold Zborowski (1889-1932)