THE LIFE AND WORKS OF

MOD'lGLIANI

Boston P&m Library

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF

MODIGLIANIJanice Anderson

A Compilation of Works from theBRIDGEMAN ART LIBRARY

BR BR

ND623.M67A71996 k

Modigliani

This edition first published in 1996 byParragon Book Service LtdUnits 13-17 Avonbridge Industrial EstateAtlantic RoadAvonmouthBristol BS 11 9QD

1996 Parragon Book Service Limited

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ISBN 75251 151 3

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Editors: Barbara Horn, Alexa Stace, Alison Stace, Tucker Slingsby Ltd andJennifer Warner.Designers: Robert Mathias and Helen MathiasPicture Research: Kathy Lockley

The publishers would like to thank Joanna Hartley at theBridgeman Art Library for her invaluable help.

AMEDEO MODICLIANI 1884-1920

AMONG i in si i i hing ( mud l artists from all over Europe and beyondwho made Paris in the early 20th century the most innovative and 1 e\ -

olutionary artistic centre in the world Amedeo Modigliani stood out asmuch for his notorious life style as for his painting. I lowever, it has beenremarked of him that if he had never existed, the course of 20th centuryart would have gone on just the same. Yet he remains one of the greatest,if not the greatest. Italian painters of the 20th centurj and an artist whosestyle is recognized and his work coveted l>\ people of all nationalities.Despite the fact that almost all his work was done in France, particularlyParis, where he lived most of his adult life. Modigliani. a superb draughts-man, was essentially a classical painter, an heir of Italian Renaissance art,particularly that of Botticelli.Amedeo Clemen te Modigliani was horn in Livorno (Leghorn), Italy on

12 July 1884. He was the fourth and youngest child of FlaminioModigliani and his wile. Eugenie Carson, members ol a once well-off butnow comparatively poor Sephardic Jewish family who had been estab-lished in Italy for mam generations. Modigliani was ill as a child, and wasnever to be physicall) strong, an attack of typhoid and pleurisy in his teensleaving him with a tubercular lung.

Modigliani had shown signs of artistic: talent earl) on, and when he was15 he began to study at the school of the artist Guglielmo Micheli inLivorno. In 1901, after a period of illness, his mother took him to thewarm south, to Naples, Capri and Rome where the young Modigliani hadhis first tastes of the glories of Italian art. He enrolled in the Academy ofFine Art in Florence in 1902, where the head was Ciovanni Fattori, thefamous Macchiaioli painter. From Florence. Modigliani moved to Venice,

where the already important Biennale exhibitions allowed him to discoverthe way in which Modern Art in Europe was moving.By early 1906, Modigliani was in Paris, which was to be his artistic home

for the rest of his life. By now he was painting and drawing feverishly, find-ing his place in the artistic life of the city. At first he seems to have been in-fluenced by the work of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, but by 1910, when heexhibited six works in that year's Salon des Independants, the influence ofCezanne, whose work he first encountered in depth at a major retrospec-tive in Paris in 1907, had become much more important, although hisgreat admiration for African art and for what Pablo Picasso was doing, alsoplayed their parts in the development of Modigliani's art.

It was about this time that Modigliani began to concentrate on sculp-ture, his painting and drawing becoming very much studies for his sculp-ture. His sculpture was done in stone, an activity which put an enormousstrain on his never strong physique and hail lungs. In 1912, he showedseven sculptured heads at the Salon d'Automne in Paris.The outbreak of war in 1914 changed the course of Modigliani's life.

Not only did it remove from Paris many of his circle of friends, includinghis first patron Dr Paul Alexandre, it also greatly diminished the artmarket of the day. At the same time, it deprived Modigliani of his sourcesof cheap or free stone for carving and prevented his allowance fromhome reaching him in Paris. The cycle of drinking in cafes with poverty-stricken refugees, of taking drugs, of living in damp, dirty studios withoutproper food became a way of life which Modigliani did not seem to wantto change.Through it all, however, he continued to paint. By 1915 he had virtu-

ally given up sculpture, though its influence would continue to have aneffect on his painting and drawing, both of which he worked at fever-ishly. His work was a constant exploration of composition and structure,of line, diagonals and planes of colour in which he sought the way toartistic perfection.

By 1917, there might have been a chance for some sort of order inModigliani's life. He had a loyal and enthusiastic dealer in Leopold

Zborowski, and a devoted mistress in Jeanne Hebuterne, with whom heenjoyed the closest relationship of his life, though even that was stormyand he was not above beating her up in public.The deterioration in Modigliani's health continued as the war reached

its climax. Life in Paris was hard, but Zborowski still managed to organisea big, one-man exhibition of Modigliani's work at the Berthe Weill Galleryat the end of 1917. It was closed down by the police, because of the large,erotic paintings of nudes in the gallery's window. Three months laterZborowski, seriously concerned for the artist's health, sent him and Jeannedown to the South of France. Though he disliked the climate and was irri-tated by the pseudo-family life with Jeanne, who was pregnant with theirfirst child, and whose mother stayed with them, Modigliani producedmany superb paintings, most of them of local people.Jeanne gave birth to Modigliani's daughter, also called Jeanne, in

November 1918. In May 1919, Modigliani returned to Paris, Jeanne andtheir baby following him a month later. Life returned to its old course,though by now the critics were taking an interest in Modigliani's work andthe favourable reviews were increasing in number. Works by Modiglianiwere included to favourable notices in an exhibition in London and in theSalon d'Automne in Paris.

But the artist himself was sinking ever deeper into a pit of ill health ag-gravated by heavy drinking sessions in the cafes of Paris. In January 1920,his friends Ortiz de Zarate and Moi'se Kisling, visiting his studio, foundhim delirious and in severe pain, lying in a bed strewn with empty bottlesand sardine cans. They got him into hospital, where he died of tubercularmeningitis on 24 January. The next day, Jeanne Hebuterne, heavily preg-nant with their second child, jumped out of the fifth floor window of herparent's apartment, killing both herself and the child.Amedeo Modigliani's funeral at Pere Lachaise cemetary was attended

by a large number of artists, including his close friends, deeply shaken byhis death - and by numerous dealers, said to have been negotiating newprices for his pictures almost at the graveside.

D> Head of a Woman Wearing a Hat 1907

Watercolour

Little of the uniquelyforceful artist that Modiglianiwould become shows in thisstylistically unremarkableportrait. It dates from the timein Paris when Modigliani hadformed a close friendship withDr Paul Alexandre, whobecame one of his mostimportant patrons: over a fiveor six year period, Dr.Alexandre was to acquire some25 portraits and dozens ofdrawings by the artist. The

model for this painting isthought to have been the samegirl, possibly one of Dr.Alexandre's patients, whomodelled for the major oilportrait, The Jewess, whichModigliani completed in 1908.The flat colour planes andstrongly graphic approachsuggests that Modigliani mayhave had it in mind to makethe picture the basis of aposter or some other form ofgraphic reproduction.

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MODIGLIAM 11

D>Head c.1911-13

Stone

The architectural element,present in much ofModigliani's sculpture, is verymuch to the fore in thisslender, even elegant carving.Here is the typical column-likeshape and the flattened top ofthe head, as though this isintended as a caryatid, part ofsome great architecturalscheme the artist had in hismind. In fact, Modigliani wasnever to complete any majorsculptural work. The nearesthe came to it was his group ofseven stone heads, called Heads- a decorative ensemble,exhibited at the Salond'Automne in Paris in 1912.By about 1915 Modligliani wasfinding it increasingly difficultto get stone to carve: the FirstWorld War, which had begunin 1914, had closed downmany of the building sitesfrom which Modigliani hadtaken (or stolen) his chunks oflimestone. Poor physical healthand the state of his tubercularlungs finally forced him to giveup sculpture in favour ofpainting and drawing.

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MODIGLIANI 13

> Seated Female Nude c.1913

Blue chalk.

The large group of drawingsofwomen with their armsabove their heads, in theclassical sculpture attitude ofcaryatids (female figures usedas supporting columns inarchitecture), are amongModigliani's most beautifulworks. The drawings weredone, usually on large sheetsof paper, in pencil, chalk,

crayon and watercolour.Modigliani did more than oneversion of this particular pose,including one in a rose-coloured watercolour..Although the drawing suggeststhat Modigliani was doingpreliminary sketches forsculpture, it would hardlyhave been possible, technically,to carry out the pose in stone.Critics tend to see this andsimilar drawings as attempts toevoke the spirit of the ait ofthe period, includingsculpture, rather than producepractical ideas to be renderedin stone.

MODIGLIAM 15

< Caryatid c. 191 3-14

Pencil and vvatercolour

If the elongated line of theSeated Female Nude (see page13) suggests the influence ofthe sculptor Brancusi, thisdrawing seems more nearlyattuned to the art ofcontemporary painters likePablo Picasso, as well as toModigliani's own work as apainter. In some ways, itprovides a bridge between the

work of Modigliani thesculptor and Modigliani thepainter: the elongated, sharplydefined nose could have comefrom one of the artist'ssculpted heads, while thepose of the body suggests apainter's more sensualawareness of the warm fleshand the curved limbs of thefemale form.

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D> Seated Nude 1914

Pencil and watercolour

For this assured study,giving rein to his love of line,Modigliani has set aside thearchitectural caryatid posewhich dominated so much ofhis work of this period and haschosen to put his model into amore artistically conventionalnude pose. Although he hasretained the sharply definednose and one pointed breast ofthe Caryatid watercolour (see

pages 14-15), he has allowedhimself to demonstrate that heis fully aware of the infinitevariations of shape, tone andtexture to be found in thefemale form. Thus, thedrawing represents anotherstep in Modigliani's transitionfrom an artistic life centredalmost exclusively on sculptureto one in which painting wouldbe the dominant interest.

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MODIGLIANI 19

> Diego Rivera c.1914

Pen and ink

The outsize, ebullient andconvivial Diego Rivera, whowas to become Mexico's best-known 20th century artist, wasone of Modigliani's closestfriends and his companion onmany a drunken sortiethrough the bars and cafes ofwar-time Paris. Modigliani didmany drawings and paintingsof Rivera, most of thememphasising his Rabelaisianquality. This pen and inkstudy, which appears to havebeen a preliminary drawingfor a large oil painting, alsodone in 1914, bears anextraordinary affinity with oneof the very few square-shaped- as distinct from columnar -sculptures that Modiglianiproduced. It is also quite freeof the elongated styleModigliani employed for mostof his portraits of this period:it is the real round-faced,small-featured Rivera lookingout at us from the drawing.

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Detail

> Pierrot (Self-portrait) 1915

Oil on paper

This picture, labelled Pierrotby Modigliani, has often beentaken as a self-portrait. Whileit is a strangely androgynousview of himself, the face andneck stippled with points ofsoft and delicate rose and sage-grey colours, it is also typical ofModigliani's portraits of thisperiod. Although he was veryeconomical with the 'props'which made up thebackgrounds of his portraits,Modigliani was still happy at

this time to give his portraits acertain liveliness by addinglittle personal details -

earrings or brooches, perhapsa lace collar or a little feather-trimmed hat for his womensubjects, a bowler hat or neatlyknotted tie for his men.Here, Pierrot has around hisgreatly elongated neck - alegacy of the sculptureModigliani had been workingon so recently - the frilledcollar of a clown or harlequin.

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< Tete de Femme c.1915

Oil on board

MODIGLIANI WOULD SEEM to bepainting a type, as much as areal person, here. Theportrait, set in a stronglypatterned border created fromthe woman's dress and thecurtain edge in front of herleft shoulder, is clear-cut,almost harsh, in its depictionof the face. The small, close-seteyes and the little mouth,connected visually by the longpointed nose, suggest a wary,even a rather suspicious,nature. Stylistically, theportrait shares certaincharacteristics with others of1915, including one of HenriLaurens and one, calledRaymond, which is thought tobe a portrait of a youthfulRaymond Radiguet, author ofLe diable au corps. In all threeportraits Modigliani haschosen virtually to omit the lefteyebrow and reduce the lefteye to an inward-looking patchof colour.

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Portrait of Moise Kisling 1915

Oil on canvas

Chai'm Soutine 1915

Oil on canvas

Born in Minsk into povertyand neglect in a Jewish ghetto,Chaim Soutine managed tomake his way to Paris beforehe was 20. Despite the greatdifference in theirtemperaments - Soutine thewild romantic who wouldbecome a leadingExpressionist and Modiglianithe classicist - the two weresoon close friends andcolleagues. To Modigliani mustgo most of the credit forturning the extraordinarilyinarticulate, dirty and crudeyoung Soutine into a sociallyacceptable person: it wasModigliani who taught Soutinehow to hold a knife and forkand use a handkerchief. At thesame time, Modigliani clearlyaccepted Soutine's artistictalent: there is no sign ofcondescension in this portraitwhich is, rather, an affectionatestudy of the young artist.

MODKiLIAM 25

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< Portrait ofJuan Gris 1915

Oil on canvas

Juan Gris, whose real namewas Jose Victoriano Gonzales,was one of several paintersfrom Spain (Picasso wasanother) working in Paris atthis time. He was deeplyinvolved in painting in theanalytical form of Cubismcurrently being followed inParis, but with a refinementand originality that hasassured him a major part inthe history of modernpainting. The rathereffeminate pose Modiglianihas given to his portrait ofJuan Gris has allowedcommentators to infer thathe did not greatly care forthe Spanish painter. True,Modigliani emphasises hissubject's large, long-lashedeyes and sets the thin face on athick, fleshy neck. At the sametime, Modigliani is clearlypainting someone who is morethan just a passing face. Gris,remaining in Paris in 1915despite the war, was part ofModigliani's close circle andas such an obvious subject fora portrait.

MODIGLIANI 27

[> La Femme en Bleu c. 1 915

Oil on canvas

This unfinished study of awoman shows that Modiglianiwas aware of Paul Cezanne'spainting methods, for thepainting's tone values arecarefully considered andanchored by the precise linesof the drawing, in the way of alate Cezanne. In his moremature paintings, Modiglianiconcealed the strong structuralfoundation of his work,making his paintings appeareffortlessly elegant.

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Portrait of Mrs Hastings 1915

Oil on cardboard

Madam Pompadour 1915

Oil on canvas

This lively painting is thoughtto be a portrait of BeatriceHastings, proudly showing off anew hat. Beatrice is known tohave enjoyed having fineclothes to parade in, and it isvery likely that the picture, withits label painted clearly in

English on it, was Modigliani'sway of poking gentle fun ather: she may think that hernew hat gives her the air of agreat lady, but he is likeningher to a courtesan and king'smistress, while her hat has adistinctly carnival air about it.

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D> Bride and Groom (The Couple) 1915-16

Detail

Oil on canvas

By the time he painted thisdouble portrait Modiglianihad developed a 'formula' forpainting faces. Apparentlyinfluenced to a degree by theideas of the Cubists and by.African art, a typicalModigliani 'face' of thisperiod would emphasise thecentral positioning of eyes -

usually small, almond-shapedand blank - elongated nose,often defined by a straightline on one side and a curvedline on the other and a small,

button mouth, often with aline through it. Despite usinghis 'formula' to paint boththe faces in this portrait,Modigliani has still been ableto give his portraits a splendidcharacterisation, conveyingbrilliantly the essential inanityand shallowness of bothsitters. By the time hepainted this picture,Modigliani had a dealer, PaulGuillaume, who was no doubtencouraging him to paintsaleable portraits.

MODIGLIAXI 33

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Max Jacob 1916

Oil on canvas

The Sculptor Lipchitz and His Wife 1916

Oil on canvas

Jacques (Chaim) Lipchitz wasanother Jewish refugee fromthe Baltic making his way inthe art world centred on Pariswhen Modigliani got to knowhim. Lipchitz was a sculptorand thus moved in the samesmall circle as Modigliani in theyears before the First WorldWar. Lipchitz was a very finesculptor, who would eventually

find fame in America, where hefled to escape the GermanOccupation of France. By thetime this double portrait wascommissioned by the sculptorto mark his marriage, he wasalready a much moreestablished and successful artistthan Modigliani - a fact whichmav have annoyed the latter,who has suggested a certain

bourgeois respectability, evenself-satisfaction, about hissitters here. Since Lipchitz waspaying Modigliani by the hourfor the picture, and hadcommissioned the doubleportrait because he thoughtthe artist would have to spendmore time on it, this argues acertain ingratitude onModigliani's part.

MODK.MWI 37

> Chaim Soutine 1917

Oil on canvas

Chaim Soutine liked to wearModigliani's cast-off shirts; hesaid it gave him confidenceand the feeling that he mighteven become Modigliani.Certainly, this is a moremature man, more sure of hisway in the world, than the bo\Modigliani painted in 1915(see page 25). It may even beone of Modigliani's shirtsSoutine is wearing here: a hintof the friendship between thetwo, perhaps, like the nearly-empty wine glass on the tablebeside Soutine. Modigliani hasbeen careful to paint a truelikeness of his friend here,setting aside his usual fine,sculpture-like noses and smallmouths to show Soutine'smuch fleshier nose and fullmouth as they really were.

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< Seated Nude 1917

MODKiLIAM 41

Oil on canvas

MODIGLIANl BEGAN IN 1916 agreat series of oil paintings ofthe nude (as distinct from hisearlier nudes, many of themdrawings and watercolours,which stemmed largely fromhis sculptural work) with agroup of pictures ofwomenstretched out on a sofa.Although some commentatorshave suggested that his

models were prostitutes fromthe Paris streets, it wouldseem that in fact he usedeither girls from outside hisown world or, when he couldafford them, professionalmodels. The face and full-breasted body of this seatednude are very similar to thoseol one of the reclining nudesof 1916, suggesting that

Modigliani had recalled anearly model for the picture.Apart from one possibledrawing, there are no firmlyidentifiable nude studies ofBeatrice Hastings, forinstance, despite the fact thatthe) lived together for a longperiod, nor did Modigliani donude paintings of his closewomen friends.

Reclining Nude, One Arm on Her Forehead 1917

Oil on canvas

D> Overleafpages 42-43

The full, ripe, almostRubensesque beauty of theSeated Nude has given wav inthis painting to somethingmuch more in keeping with20th century ideas of eroticfemale beautv. Both settingand pose are simple, allowingthe viewer's full attention to

concentrate on the deliberatelyprovocative pose in which theartist has placed his model.She herself is looking awayto one side, as if distancingherself from the artist andhis work. As with many ofModigliani's nudes, thewoman is allowed to be

independent, to beemancipated, as it were.She does not stare out of thecanvas, offering herself likesome courtesan or prostitute- which would, of course,have made her moreacceptable to ideas of publicdecencv at the time.

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MODK.l.I A\l 15

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\> Seated Nude with a Shirt1917

Nude with Necklace 1917

Oil on canvas

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MODIC.LIAM 49

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Nude on a Blue Cushion 1917

Oil on canvas

52

< Madame Kisling 1917

Oil on canvas

Ri-xKi: Kisling, wife ofModigliani's friend and fellowartist, Moise Kisling, is said tohave treated Modigliani like abrother. The Kislings shared astudio for a time withModigliani, often joining himin parties at such well-knownhaunts as the Carrefour Vavin.Renee Kisling was well-knownin Paris for the eccentricity ofher dress and hairstyle, whichModigliani faithfullyreproduced in at least twoportraits, both of whichstrongly emphasised theartist's graphic skill as much ashis use of oil paint. In this one,the definition of the line ismore concentrated than otherportraits, especially in the jawline and hair.

O Portrait of ThoraKlinchlowstrom c. 191 7- 18

Oil on canvas

Among Leopold Zborowski'smain self-imposed tasks asModigliani's dealer and agentwas the acquiring ofportrailcommissions frombusinessmen, wealthy refugeesfrom the war in Europe, or,with luck, prominentpersonalities, whose portraitsdisplayed, perhaps, in a Parisgallery, would attract attentionto Modigliani's genius as aportrait painter. It is possiblethat Thora Klinchlowstromwas the wife, daughter or sisteiof such a person. This portraitis moving towards Modigliani'smature style, based onmarvellous fluidity of line,smooth paintwork and anelegant style.

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O Portrait of Leopold Survage1917-18

Oil on canvas

Leopold Survage (orSturzvage, to give him hisRussian name) was anengraver who became one ofModigliani's friends anddrinking companions. WhenModigliani was persuaded tomake a stay in the South ofFrance for the good of hishealth early in 1918, he waspleased to meet up withSurvage because they could goout on the town together.Since Modigliani did not carefor the bright light and warmair of the South of France, hedid not paint his friends there,and this portrait of Survage isthought to have been done inParis before the trip south. Itis one of Modigliani's lastreally characterful portraits,with the sitter's personalitybrilliantly depicted in a picturethat is full of movement.

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t> Boy in a Blue Jacket 1918

Oil on canvas

MODIGLIAM AND THE CLOSEcompanion of his last years,Jeanne Hebuterne, spentmuch of 1918 on the Coted'Azur, in Nice and Cagnes,largely for the good ofModigliani's shatteredconstitution. .AlthoughModigliani painted fourlandscapes while he was inCagnes, he continued to paintmostly pictures of people,often with a lighter palettethan he had been using in

Paris. The people were seldomhis friends, Modiglianipreferring to paint in thesouth of France peopleunknown to him - servants,children, people doingeveryday things. This portraitof a boy, the colour of hisjacket reflected in his eyes, istypical of the artist's portraitstvle at this time, the elongatedline of the head being matchedby the narrow, sloping line ofthe shoulders.

Portrait of Dedie 1918

Oil on canvas

MODIGLIAM 57

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> Jeanne Hebuterne 1918

Oil on canvas

Jeanne Hebuterne, a youngpupil at the AcademieColarossi in Paris came intoModigliani's life early in 1917.His early portraits of her werein his 'society portrait' mode -Jeanne with a necklace,Jeanne wearing a small blackhat, Jeanne wearing a largeblack hat - but as theirintimacy grew so his portraits

became more intimate, morerevealing of the real youngwoman. From all accounts, shewas a quiet, submissive girlwho adored him totally,making no attempt to 'reform'his lifestyle or his drinkingand drug-taking habits. It isthe quiet, loving girl whostares out of this portrait atthe artist.

MODIGLIAM 59

Oil on canvas

This is Jeanne Hebuternegiven the lighter colourModigliani used in portraitspainted in the south of France.It is as if the bright sun andlight, clear air of the south hasbeen allowed to permeate hispaintings. She is also picturedas a mature woman, ratherthan the girl of earlierportraits. It is probable thatwhen this portrait was beingpainted. Jeanne was pregnantwith her first child byModigliani, a girl they calledGiovanna. though she wasregistered as JeanneHebuterne, being born in Nicein November 1918.

> The Beautiful Grocer 1918

Oil on canvas

Very unusually forModigliani, he has allowed ahint of nature, or at least of anoutdoor world, into thissimplified, light-toned portrait,in which he has reduced thehead and body of the shopgirlinto a connecting group ofoval shapes: head. neck, arms,torso. Despite the light coloursin which most of the picture ispainted, it is an austere work,with no leafor twig beingallowed to break the severe,flat outlines of the tree trunksand branches. The girl herself-surely Modigliani s title forthis picture, La Belle Epiciere, ismeant ironically

-seemslifeless, her stare fixed. It is aharsh, disquieting worldModigliani seems to bedepicting here.

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> Girl with Pigtails 1918

Oil on canvas

This little girl was thesubject of at least two morepictures done by Modiglianiduring his time in the South ofFrance. In two pictures she sitson a plain kitchen chair andwears the same pink, high-necked dress in all three. Inone picture her pigtails arepushed up under a beret. Allthree pictures are paintedindoors with the same woodendoor, or piece of furniture inthe background. During his 15months away from Paris in

1918-19, Modigliani paintedmostly unknown people andeven, while sharing a studio inCagnes with Soutine,attempted some landscapes.Despite his awareness of thework of Cezanne, who hadlived and done much of hisgreatest work not far away inAix, Modigliani neverattempted still lifes, althoughcritics have seen Cezanne'sinfluence in the poses andcolours of many of Modigliani'sportraits of this period.

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"Oil on canvas

Here is another local girl -someone who is not aprofessional model, but isprepared to stand patientlywhile the artist paints herpicture. A story told about thispicture is that Modigliani hasstood the girl 'in the corner'for bringing him lemonadewhen he had ordered wine.The story may well be true,though this was not the onlypicture of this period in whichModigliani stood his younggirl model in a corner of aroom in a quite specificenvironment in which eventhe tiled floor was painted indetail: Little Girl in Blue usedvirtually the same pose andshowed the same steady gaze.

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> Gipsy Woman with Baby1918

Jeanne Hebuterne with White Collar c. 191 7-1

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Oil on canvas

MODIGLIANI 67

< The Little Peasant c.1918

Oil on canvas

The peasant boys of theSouth of France evoked inModigliani a quite differentresponse from the poor boysof the citv he had painted inParis. There is no emotionalresponse to the plight of thepoor expressed in pictureslike this. Modigliani hasrecorded the fact that the boyhas grown out of his jacketand waistcoat, but he haschosen to do so in terms of thedetail of the subject; this is lessa portrait than an explorationof mass, volume and the waysin which the modelling of asubject is affected by light andis reminiscent of Cezanne'slate portraits, also painted inthe strong light of the Southof France.

> Boy in Shorts c.1918

Oil on canvas

MODGLIANl SEEMS l() HAVEfound a more middle-classsitter here: a well-dressedyoung bo) in shorts and aNorfolk jacket. It is possiblethat Leopold Zborowski, whohad organised Modigliani'sstay on the Cote d'Azur andwho is known to have workedhard at finding models forhim, obtained a commissionfor a painting of the lair-haired boy. Like others of thisperiod, the picture shows theinfluence of Cezanne onModigliani's choice of colours:a marvellous mix of lightochres, pinks and greys,skilfull) blended as if for astill life.

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> Portrait of Frans Hellens1919

Oil on canvas

Reclining Nude 1919

Oil on canvas

Here Modigliani is paintingnot a figure picture but aportrait. The subject is thewriter and critic Frans Hellens,whom Modigliani knew well.Frans Hellens later recalledthat he sat for a portrait byModigliani in Nice in 1919, forwhich the artist charged him20 francs. Unfortunateh.Madame Hellens did not carefor the portrait because shethought that it did not looklike her husband andpersuaded him to sell it. Some1 5 vears later when she sawthe portrait again, she realisedthat she had been wrong, forthe portrait looked just likeone of their daughters.

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< Girl in a Blue Dress 1919

Oil on canvas

This is possibly one of the lastportraits Modigliani painted inhis studio in the South ofFrance: the chair the girl sitson, the background, and thelovely light colouring arecommon to many otherpictures done during thisprolific period. Modiglianiretained the lighter palette inhis work when he returned toParis at the end of May 1919.He did not take back with himfrom the South of France anyidea of painting landscapes orstill lifes, however; from nowon he devoted himself topainting portraits, mostly ofhis friends in Paris.

D> Young Man with Red Hair1919

Oil on canvas

This is a typical later periodModigliani portrait: the sitteris quite relaxed, informallyposed and gazing goodhumouredly back at the artist.The image is allowed to flow ina series of elongated curves,from the narrow head downthe long neck and merginginto the sloping shoulders.The hands crossed lightly inthe lap with the picturefinishing at the knees are alsohighly characteristic ofModigliani's treatment.

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< Mario 1919

Oil on canvas

This and the self-portraitwhich ends this book arethought to have been the lasttwo paintings completed byAmedeo Modigliani. MarioVarvogli was a Greek musicianwho became a regular drinkingcompanion in the artist's lastmonths. Modigliani paidenough attention to theportrait to do severalpreliminary sketches andstudies for it. The final pictureshows a great preoccupationwith the character of his sitter.Modigliani shows Mariodrooping wearily rather thansitting in his seat, early

morning stubble clearly visibleand at odds with the eveningclothes he is wearing, though itis also a clear indication that theman has been up all night. Helooks rather sloppy, very tired -

but also amused at the situationin which he finds himself.

Detail t>

MODIGLIAN1 77

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< Self-Portrait 1919

Oil on canvas

The thin, almost emaciatedfeatures in this self-portrait inoils, the only one Modigliani isknown to have done and tohave called a self-portrait, arehard to reconcile with the lastphotograph of the artist, inwhich he looks haggard,unkempt, unshaven andcoarse-featured. But there is adrawing of Modigliani readingin bed, done by JeanneHebuterne in the weeks beforehis death, which shows just thesame fine, almost aestheticfeatures. Perhaps the artists,recognising that tuberculosisand approaching death bringtheir own refinement, weremaking truer portraits ofModigliani than the camera.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The publisher would like to thank the following for their kind permission toreproduce the paintings in this book:

Bridgeman Art Library, London/William Young 8c Co., Boston: 9; /PrivateCollection: 13, 38, 51, 63, 73, 74; /Christie's, London: 22, 53, 59 (also used onfront cover, back cover detail and half-title page detail), 65, 69, 75; /MetropolitanMuseum of Art, New York: 33; /Galleria d'Arte Moderna, Milan: 34; /ArtInstitute of Chicago: 37; /Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York: 44-45,60; /Musee d'Arte Moderne, Villeneuve d'Ascq: 47; /Konstmuseet i Ateneum,Helsinki: 54; /National Gallery of Art, Washington DC: 67; /Tate Gallery,London: 68; /Musee Nationale d'Art Moderne, Paris: 55

Musee National d'Art Moderne, Paris: 10Guggenheim Museum, New York: 1 1, 57Tate Gallery, London: 12Art Institute of Chicago: 14Feder und Rote Tusche, New York: 1

7

Phototheque des Musees de la Ville, Paris: 18Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart: 25Art Museum, Princeton University, New Jersey: 28Art Gallery, Ontario: 29National Gallery of Art, Washington DC: 39, 48-49, 52Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York: 64Christie's, London: 76Museu de Arte, Sao Paulo: 78

Every effort has been made to trace the copyright holders and we apologise inadvance for any unintentional omissions. W'e would be pleased to insert theappropriate acknowledgement in any subsequent edition of this publication.

BOSTON PUBLIC L'Pfl^.pi T- . isi ail 1 1 1

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in HIS short, turbulent life Amedeo Modiglianiproduced the greatest art of any Italian of thiscentury. A suberb draughtsman, Modigliani wasalso a great portrait painter, a brilliant painter of

the nude and a fine sculptor. All these aspects ofhis many-sided genius are displayed in themagnificent pictures in this book. Here are

portraits of Modigliani's fellow artists like Juan

(iris and his contemporaries, some depicted inpencil drawing and some in sculpture, in theAfrican style with which he is most associated.

Among other famous works by Modigliani are thegreat Nude and Seated Nude with A Shirt, bothpainted in 1917, The Little Peasant andJeanneHehuterne iti a Yellow Jumper.

ISBN 0-7525-1151-3

780752"511511