Morandi exhibition in Shanghai extended for a month
"Still Life" (1938), oil on canvas, Augusto and Francesca Giovanardi Collection, Milan
Giorgio Morandi's first solo exhibition in Shanghai has been extended until November 20.
The exhibition has attracted nearly 30,000 visitors since its opening on July 9 at Shanghai Jiushi Art Museum. It was supposed to close on October 9.
The exhibition, which is sponsored by the Italian Cultural Institute, is the first comprehensive examination of the Bolognese master in China. It includes 51 original paintings that were on loan from the Giovanardi Collection, the Morandi Museum in Bologna and the National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome.
The exhibits reveal Morandi's "interior cosmos" and span his entire life. His works in landscape and still-life from various eras are featured in the exhibition in a variety of media, including oil, pencil, watercolor, graphite and etching.
His still-life and the well-known Morandi hues are particularly appealing, while his paintings reflect his persona.
The artist hardly ever left Bologna, where he simply painted in silence the everyday items he saw there. He was the most reclusive Italian artist of the 20th century because he shied away from fame and public events, which made his paintings even more personal and moving.
The Morandi color scheme has evolved into a universal trend that currently rules the world of design. Soft and sophisticated Morandi colors such as coral, salmon, champagne, pearl gray and eucharis are considered apt choices for designs of all kinds.
Morandi (1890-1964) is a master at concealing deep ideas in his deceptively ordinary paintings.
"One can travel this world and see nothing," he has been quoted as saying. "To achieve understanding, it is necessary not to see many things but to look hard at what you do see."
Since most of his works have been acquired privately, they are no longer widely and frequently displayed anywhere in the world.
Exhibition info:
Date: Through November 20, 10am-6pm
Venue: Shanghai Jiushi Art Museum
Address: 6/F, 27 Zhongshan Rd E1
Appointment required. Make reservations on the museum's WeChat account.
