De Chirico in Barcelona: His Artistic Career in 150 Artworks

Giorgio de Chirico will be the star of CaixaForum Barcelona from the coming 19th of July. The exhibition presents a tour along the artist's career through 150 pieces that talk about his main themes and include paintings, sculptures, watercolours and drawings.

Giorgio de Chirico (1888-1978), italian painter original from Greece, studied in Greece, Italy and Germany. Among others, he was influenced by ancient greco-roman civilisation, Renaissance architecture and by Nietzsche and Schopenhauer philosophy. He kept himself apart from parisian avant-gardes in order to develop his own artistic style.

He was a pioneer in Metaphysics painting, that recreated mysterious atmospheres by situating common objects out of their contexts. Metaphysic painting was the Surrealism predecessor, it reminds Dali´s paintings. Gloomy, melancholic, devastating scenes where sharp perspectives suggest irreal shadows. There, there is no trace of life or people but classical sculpture and mannequins that convey a feeling of loneliness and silence. De Chirico lived in Ferrara, Italy, that became a ‘metaphysic city´. Chirico´s partners in this current were his own brother Alberto Savinio (Andrea De Chirico) and his friend Carlo Carrá.

The exhibition, organized in cooperation with the ‘Giorgio e Isa de Chirico Foundation´, is curated by Katherin Robinson, from this Foundation, and by Mariastella Margozzi, from the National Gallery (Roma). It is based on six thematic areas that involve the key points of De Chirico´s career, one of the most relevant painters in 20th century. The themes he works on are metaphysics, classical iconography, portraits and urban landscapes, studies about great masters of art and the neo-metaphysics, from which he reinterprets his first artworks, being inspired by Niestzche´s eternal return concept.

In parallel with the exhibition, other educational activities can be enjoyed at CaixaForum Barcelona, such us one talk with the curators or guided visits to adults or families. De Chirico´s artwork will be exhibited until the 22nd of October.