exhibition dossier

Nature according to De Chirico

Nature! We’re surrounded by it and enveloped by it, we can’t get out of it and we can’t get any closer into it. Unsought and without warning, it whirls us into its dance and drags us along with it until we collapse, exhausted, into its arms. It constantly creates new shapes; things that exist now have never existed before; things that existed in the past don’t return. Everything is new yet always old. We live in its midst yet we are strangers to it. It constantly talks to us without ever revealing its secrets. We constantly act on it yet have no power over it... We obey its laws even when we combat them; we cooperate with it even when we claim to be working against it... It has neither a past nor a future; its eternity is the present... You can get no explanation from it, nor reap any benefit from it unless that benefit is freely given... It is a whole, yet never complete. What it does today, it will always be able to do. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

• instructions • Giorgio De Chirico • work files metaphysics art and nature nature in De Chirico’s art reflections on nature • examples of nature in philosophy and literature • The Scaffale d’arte suggestions for further reading for adults, for children, websites

Le duo, 1914-1915 New York,The Museum of Modern Art, James Thrall Soby Bequest, Acc.n.1213.1979 © 2009. Digital image, The Museum of Modern Art, New York/Scala,Firenze © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

1 instructions guide to using this dossier a resource for teachers, parents and professionals The exhibition entitled Nature According to De Chirico provides an opportunity The dossier is designed for everyone for getting to know the great master’s art and for taking a multidisciplinary approach interested in experimenting and in toward working on the theme of Nature that transcends traditional boundaries. finding things out. It offers topics The dossier contains a number of different educational tours which can be developed for discussion and activities. The work in accordance with your class’s needs and adapted to various age groups. files explore key themes with pictures, The dossier can be used both to prepare children for their visit to the exhibition information, quotes and proposals and as a source to prompt further in-depth exploration. for doing things. It is a useful tool We’d love to know what you think of this dossier and the things it offers so please for developing the issues addressed in don’t hesitate to write us at this address: [email protected] the museum either at home or in the classroom. Our goal is to go teaching goals beyond the visit to the exhibition, • group working and interacting with others through telling stories, chatting, describing forging an ongoing relationship and exchanging questions, information, impressions, opinions and feelings; for interaction and debate with schools • building up analytical capability through familiarization with works of art; and families. • fostering the workshop model in art education; • experimenting with the five sense to interpret works of art and the world around us; Per approfondire la nostra metodologia • fostering creativity and the exploration of art in a fun and absorbing way; di lavoro, vi consigliamo: • discovering the links and synergies between different artistic disciplines; C. Francucci e P. Vassalli (a cura di), • fostering the awareness of individual responsibility in safeguarding the environment. Educare all’arte, Electa Milano 2005 C. Francucci e P.Vassalli (a cura di), Educare all’arte. Immagini esperienze percorsi, Electa Milano 2009

Il mattino delle Muse (The Morning of the Muses), 1972 © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

2 Polytechnic Giorgio de Chirico an institute where people study different arts and sciences, focusing Giorgio de Chirico was born in Vólos, Greece, in 1888. The echoes of classical art on their practical applications often found in his paintings hark back to his Greek origins. He had a passion for drawing Böcklin ever since his early childhood. He studied painting at the Polytechnic in Athens Swiss painter born in 1827 whose and completed his education in Munich, where he saw and was struck by Böcklin’s painting, deeply shrouded in mystery, mysterious, timeless landscapes. His brother Andrea also took to painting at an early age, is peopled with fantastic figures signing his works Alberto Savinio. in classical architectural settings superstitious Giorgio was always on the move. He’s said to have moved house fully 21 times in 25 years, someone who believes that specific and that’s without counting the number of times he stayed in hotels or with relatives kinds of behavior influence future events and friends. He moved from Paris to Florence, to Ferrara and Rome, meteoropath and he move to New York in 1935, staying there for two years. Finally, he returned to Italy someone who’s health and well- and settled down in Rome, in a house on the Piazza di Spagna that is known today being are affected by the weather as the “Giorgio de Chirico House Museum”. hypochondriac someone unreasonably or unjustifiably In 1910 he painted the picture that launched metaphysical painting, the Enigma of an Autumn worried about their own health Afternoon, in which he depicts a vision that he had on an autumn afternoon while sitting egocentric in the middle of Piazza Santa Croce in Florence. Everything he saw around him looked someone interested only in themselves mysterious and unusual, as though it were all brand new: it was the metaphysical aspect and uninterested in others, of things. «That was when I got the bizarre impression that I was seeing all of these things who see themselves as being for the first time, and the painting’s composition revealed itself to my mind’s eye. the center of everything Now, every time I look at the picture, I relive that moment. Yet the moment is still an enigma Pictor Optimus for me because it’s impossible to explain. So I decided to call the work of art that in Latin, pictor means painter it spawned an enigma too». and optimus means excellent, ideal or exquisite. The title was an attempt by De Chirico to highlight his mastery of painting

Autoritratto con rosa (Self-Portrait with a Rose), 1923 Collezione privata, Courtesy Claudia Gian Ferrari, Milano © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

3 Something of an eccentric, he took great pleasure in highlighting his own failings and phobias. He was melancholy and superstitious,a meteoropath and a hypochondriac, egocentric and vain. He considered himself to be the greatest painter of all time, which was why he signed his works Pictor Optimus. He claimed to have exceptional skills such as the ability to see inside objects, almost as though he had x-ray vision, and to have had had revelations and premonitions in his dreams. In one interview he said: «For instance, I’m phosphorescent. I’m not joking… I can see my hand in the dark. In any case, the more time goes by, the more I realize what an extraordinary man I am». It was quite a feat to wring the truth out of him because he was always ready to tease you. «He says one thing and the next minute he denies ever having said it; he says something and, if he then sees it in print, he takes it back out of sheer bloody-mindedness. He pretends not to know the answer to questions you ask him, or if he does answer, he does everything in his power to deceive his interlocutor».1 He adopted the same enigmatic approach to painting as he did to building his own image. This filibustering nature was to emerge more strongly than ever when, on reaching the age of 30, he stopped painting the way he’d painted so far.

He drew close to the old masters, exploring the work of Raphael and Michelangelo. His style changed in 1919 and the critics didn’t approve. «Good heavens, how tedious you are! The metaphysical period, the metaphysical period… One would think that this blessed metaphysical period is all-important…! I have painted in two different ways: I’ve painted metaphysical pictures and realistic pictures. There was no need for me to add metaphysical content to the realistic pictures, and there was no reason for me to add realistic content to the metaphysical pictures. It’s like a man working with two hands, his left and his right. In any case, I produced metaphysical pictures before going to Paris, others when I was in Paris, and yet more when I got back to Italy, and if you really want to know, I’m still producing them. It’s not a crime, I hardly think you’re going to report me to the police over it!»2

At the end of World War II his early works began to fetch stratospheric prices. Unfortunately, however, the master no longer owned any so he began to copy his own style, replicating numerous works from his youth. For instance, there are fully 18 known versions of his Disquieting Muses. He even started backdating the copies, forging the date they were painted.

Numerous personal exhibitions were devoted to his work in the 1960’s and his work 1 L.Spagnoli, Lunga vita was popular both in Italy and abroad. He continued to work on his favorite themes, di Giorgio De Chirico, 1971 revisiting them with only minor variations, until he passed away in Rome in 1978, 2 L.Spagnoli, Op. cit. at the grand old age of 90.

4 work file

avant-garde metaphysics art movements that innovate by comparison with tradition Living in the world like in a huge museum of oddities... ghetto Giorgio de Chirico neighborhood found in some cities, in which it was compulsory for the Jewish population to live Metaphysical painting is a trend that first saw the light of day in Italy in the early part still-life of the 20th century as a reaction against the avant-garde movements, from known as natura morta or dead nature Impressionism to Cubism and Futurism, which had gone before it. De Chirico, the father of in Italian, the term is used metaphysical painting, aimed to achieve an art that was above history and outside time, in particular to define photographs an art totally unconnected to reality, an art that presented itself as a different reality. of inanimate objects, in other words Hence the name “metaphysical”, which the artist coined between 1911 and 1914. It comes photographic still-lifes from the Greek meta, meaning beyond, and physiká, or that which is natural. self-portrait Typically, metaphysical paintings are renowned for their clarity of composition, depicting a portrait painted by the painter recognizable objects and shapes in architecturally defined yet uninhabitable spaces. of him or herself; also used to describe We encounter mannequins, spheres, bottles, sculpted torsoes, set squares, compasses, one’s own personality metronomes, toys and cookies. These are generally shown in a stylized form with clear collage black outlines, simplified surfaces, basic chiaroscuro and monochrome shadows. a technique, used in art, that consists The way the objects are combined seems at first sight to be unconnected and meaningless. in glueing fragments and cuttings Metaphysical town squares with their unlikely perspectives, inhabited by tiny figures of images and pictures onto a surface and objects that throw huge shadows, are places where time has ground to a halt. in order to create an artistic composition Metaphysical paintings feel like stages on which ambiguous and ironic scenes are being played out; we can easily recognize the items portrayed yet we inevitably end up asking ourselves what on earth the picture represents as a whole. Common-or-garden items in metaphysical painting become enigmatic, silent objects in a suspended, magical world, the kind of thing we only see in dreams. Metaphysical painting reveals the meaning that is hidden from our eyes, because we’re too accustomed to humdrum daily life to be able to perceive the mysterious aspects and the secret life of things.

Il veggente (Le vaticinateur - The Seer), 1914-1915 New York,The Museum of Modern Art, James Thrall Soby Bequest Inv.1214.1979 © 2009. Digital image, The Museum of Modern Art, New York/Scala,Firenze © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

5 activity tasting metaphysics De Chirico loved everything about Ferrara, where be produced some of the masterpieces of his metaphysical period. He loved the artisan workshops, the palaces and the vernacular architecture like the old ghetto, where he often stopped to buy the candy and the cookies, a specialty of the city, that appear in many of his paintings. In his paintings he exaggerates the cookies’ bizarre shape, painting them oversized and laying them on velvet as though they were jewels in a store window, which makes them look more beautiful and more mysterious than ever. If you’re interested in finding out more about the tastes of Giorgio de Chirico, who was immensely greedy, you can try preparing his favorite cookies using this recipe. Dig out the ingredients in the larder and get a grown-up to help you.

Ingredients 10 tbsp flour 12 tbsp sugar 8 egg yolks a pinch of salt the grated rind of a lemon

Method Beat the egg yolks with the sugar in a mixing bowl until the mixture starts to foam. Add the flour, salt and lemon rind (after washing the lemon and grating off the rind). Mix to obtain a soft dough. Pour the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll it until you get the shape of a long, fat sausage. Break off small pieces and form them into I saluti dell’amico lontano (Greetings from a Distant Friend), 1916 Collezione privata, per cortesia della Galleria an “S” shape. Line a baking dish with greaseproof paper, then place your soon-to-be cookies dello Scudo, Verona on it, making sure they’re properly spaced out. Preheat the oven to 160° Celsius then pop © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010 them in it for about 20 minutes, or until they’ve become a nice golden brown color. Remove them from the oven, allow them to cool, and then prise them off the greaseproof paper.

But before you start guzzling the cookies you’ve just made, make some still-life compositions with them. You can experiment with different compositions, placing other common-or-garden objects alongside the cookies, and changing the pieces and the background around as often as you like. Take a photo of each new composition to show your classmates your very own “metaphysical compositions with cookies”. Finally, try choosing an enigmatic title for each photo, and then get down to the serious business of… scoffing the lot!

6 activity if I were an object, I’d… De Chirico painted over 100 self-portraits in the course of his career. Dressed either conservatively or in the latest fashions, alone or in company, deep in thought or in the guise of an ancient statue, his face appears in a huge number of works of art, and then some! His presence and his personal memories pop up in the objects he paints when we least expect to see them: Greek statues remind us of his country of origin, while set squares and chugging trains recall his father, a railroad engineer, and sculpted feet, trains and ships on the horizon, or maps allude to the great traveler Giorgio was throughout his life. Each painting harbors a secret self-portrait. If you were an object, what would you like to be? Base your answer on your own personal tastes, lifestyle and history. It should be lots of fun thinking of the things that tell your story. Here are some suggestions: if you were… a color, a book, a geometric shape, a planet, an animal, a country, a means of transportation, a noise, food, a plant… which would you be? Ask your classmates the same question. Making photofit pictures of “myself as…” is an unusual and fun way of getting to know people and their tastes. The final step is to produce your own collage self-portrait, using pictures of the objects you’ve chosen from old newspapers and magazines. activity builders of mysteries What a lot of mystery there is in the titles De Chirico chooses for his works! A glance at some of them will show us that they’re already quite an enigma in themselves, emitting a sense of arcane secrecy. Here are some examples: The Disquieting Muses – Mysterious Bath With a Swan – The Muses on Vacation – The Enigma of the Skyscraper – The Enigma of an Autumn Afternoon – The Enigma of the Time – The Dream Transformed – The Uncertainty of the Poet – The Achievement of the Philosopher – Mystery and Melancholy of a Street – The Fatal Temple – The Fate of the Poet – The Homecomer – The Dual Dream of Spring – Metaphysical Interior with Large Workshop – The Tower of Silence – The Bride’s Secret – The Melancholy Departure – Interior Metaphysics with Cookies – Metaphysical Interior with Lifeless Sun – Still-Life with Salami – The Fish in the Fountain of the Mysterious Baths – Furniture in the Valley – Gladiators on the Seashore – The Plucked Goose – Sun on the Easel.

What can possibly have happened to the poor goddesses (The Disquieting Muses) who were once so fierce but who have now ended up on holiday (The Muses on Vacation)? Does Still-Life with Salami tell us the story of the cold-cut serial killer? In the same way as De Chirico breaks up the logic of his story in his pictures, why don’t you try to use the odd title of one of his pictures to think up your own enigmatic story filled with absurd and paradoxical visions? The only tool you need is your vivid imagination. When you’ve finished, look up the picture corresponding to the title you’ve chosen. Would it work as a cover illustration for your story?

La Melancolie Hermetique (Hermetic Melancholy), 1919 Parigi, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris © Musée d’Art Moderne/Roger Viollet © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

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art and nature

The more a person studies Art, the less interested he is in Nature. Oscar Wilde metaphor The depiction of nature began with the first images ever drawn by man, and its history a figure of speech used in place is closely linked to the evolution of the portrayal of space. If you flick through the pages of another less expressive way of an art history book, you’ll see that space and nature are depicted in countless different of saying the same thing. For instan- and at times even conflicting ways. Each of these depictions is linked to the sensitivity ce, saying «she’s a real treasure» of a given period in history. means that you value someone In classical art, the elements of nature are simplified and positioned in space in order as you would a treasure of their importance. allegory But between the 13th and 14th centuries, Giotto used shadows and diagonal lines concrete figures used to represent to introduce the idea of depth. He still didn’t have much sense of proportion or distance, ideas and concepts though. His trees are all the same size whether they’re close to the viewer or set perspective in the middle distance. a set of geometric rules that translate It was only with the dawn of the Renaissance that artists discovered perspective, the way we see things into painting using it to create the illusion of distance and thus proving that they were capable of depicting and provide the illusion of depth the third dimension. Later on, Leonardo da Vinci used the technique of fading the color and distance: the third dimension of the background to convey the distance of objects in space. This points up an attempt Land Art both to highlight the various forms of nature, whether living or dead, and to afford them a kind of art that uses the natural the same treatment, placing them on an equal footing without any value judgment involved. landscape as its raw material, its “canvas” Caravaggio was the first painter to use a Basket of Fruit as the leading character in a painting. frottage Careful observation of reality and, at the same time, the ability to transcend that reality a drawing technique consisting are hallmarks of his art. in repeatedly passing a pencil over In the 18th century, painting set landscapes alongside ancient ruins. Statues and fragments a sheet of paper placed on top of ancient buildings are immersed in nature, underscoring its eternity by comparison of an embossed or rough surface with the transient nature of man and the things he creates. But the Romantic era was unquestionably the period in which artists showed the greatest interest in nature. They painted the moments when the beauty and power of natural phenomena are at their most striking, arousing strong and conflicting sentiments in the viewer.

Piazza d’Italia con torre rossa (Italian Square with Pink Tower), 1934 Rovereto, MART Museo di arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto, Collezione L.F. Archivio Fotografico MART © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

8 still life Later on, with Realism, man’s relationship with nature changed once again. Still-life is a form of art like landscape As more and more scientific and technical discoveries were made, idealized and dream or portrait painting. The name comes like nature gave way to a more down-to-earth approach and greater attention from the subject matter depicted, was devoted to man. In the late 19th century, Impressionism experimented with which can consist of objects, animals a new kind of representation based on the effect of light on nature. Artists came out or natural elements such as fruit, of their studios and immersed themselves completely in the depiction of the landscape, flowers, vegetables, musical instruments, to the point where all reference to space was simply lost, like in Monet’s famous Water Lilies. weapons, fish, or anything else that It was only with contemporary art that the relationship between art and nature changed is lifeless and thus “still”. for good, going hand in hand with the revolution in the languages of artistic expression3. A still-life can comprise objects that Rather than being just something you painted, nature itself became a space in which are similar to one another or different you, the artist, could intervene. In the 1970’s, Land Art artists interacted directly with real from each other. There can be just one places, using them as their canvas, using natural elements to make sculptures, traveling or many of these objects. the world and leaving traces of their art behind them; in short, reconciling man with nature.

De Chirico preferred the English term still-life to the Italian “natura morta” activity (or “dead nature”) because, as nature intended as he put it: «it represents the silent Artists sometimes choose to depict nature realistically while at other times they paint life of objects, a calm and noiseless life it in unrecognizable ways, but only in an effort to transcend reality. In any event, if you want without any movement». to depict nature, the best thing to do is to observe it carefully first. Despite knowing so much about everything around him, Leonardo spent hours observing plants and jotting Objects have always had a place down their features and characteristics before drawing them. We should learn from in works of art, but it was only around the great artists and not make do with just taking a superficial look at things! 1600 CE that they became leading For instance, try taking a magnifying glass at looking at some leaves, studying their color, players in those works of art. their shape and the veins on them. You’ll see that they’re all different, even ones that come In a still-life, objects play different roles. from the same tree! Examine their surfaces using the frottage technique, then trace They tell us of the inexorable passage their outline on a sheet of paper. Finally, apply a layer of tempera on each leaf as though of time, or they can be metaphors you were putting ink on a rubber-stamp, then stamp the result on paper: the imprints they or allegories; or they can leave are different. Once you’ve finished your experiments, you’ll have learned a lot make you think. and you’ll now be in a better position to depict this small piece of nature accurately! So take some crayons, pastels, colored chalks and felt-tip pens, or whatever you like drawing While objects are “represented” with best, and try to remember what you’ve just seen. Were there any straight lines? in traditional painting and sculpture, Were the colors flat and uniform? Were the shapes geometric and stylized? in contemporary art they’re often There are no exactly geometric shapes or straight lines in nature, so only use your set “presented”, or displayed, in museums square and ruler if you’ve decided not to make your drawing realistic! without any really creative work being done on them. The artist simply chooses to elevate sometimes even humdrum objects to the level of a work of art, and the only thing the viewer can do when he comes face to face with them is to feel astonishment!

3 C.Francucci and P.Vassalli (edited by) Educare all’Arte. Immagini, esperienze, percorsi, 2009

Frutta con drappo rosso a sinistra (Fruit with Red Cloth on the Left), 1960 Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

9 activity the aesthetics of nature «Federico, why aren’t you working? they asked. Of course I’m working, Federico replied, feeling a little hurt. I’m collecting the rays of the sun and putting them away for a cold winter’s day». Leo Lionni, Federico

Ask your parents, your grandparents or your teacher to take you out of town into the country, to a forest, a beach or a river bank… Get away from the noise of cars, the smell of the streets, all the rushing around, the TV; in other words, get away from everyday life. When you get there, stop in your tracks, lie down and close your eyes. Lying on the grass, the sand or the gravel you’ll rediscover what it means to be in first-hand contact with the earth. Listen to your breathing and your heartbeat, smell your skin. Breathe in deeply, and let the wind caress you. Go for a long walk, looking around you as though it were your first walk ever. Name all of the things around you, count the colors of the countryside, La partenza del cavaliere errante (Paesaggio romano) La partenza del cavaliere errante (Roman Landscape), 1923 and touch everything: the bark of the trees, the blades of grass, the grains of sand, the cool Collezione privata, per cortesia della Galleria earth. Pick up whatever takes your fancy, but most of all, build up a reservoir of images, dello Scudo, Verona © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010 sensations and feelings. Train your senses not to forget! Getting the most out of every experience, delving deep into everything you see and do, appreciating the smaller things: that’s the most important artistic endeavor you can accomplish in your whole life! aesthetics topic for discussion using the senses to interpret something: nature as I see it from the Greek aisthesis, feeling, Observe the landscape depicted in works of artists from the past. Look up the pictures and aisthonomai, to perceive in art history books or on the web, or go to museums and look at the real pictures. something through the senses Many of them show places we can still recognize today: city squares and historic buildings, streets, cityscapes and natural landscapes. Take a little longer to look at the pictures you recognize because they show places you’ve seen on TV or in photos, or you’ve actually visited, or maybe you even live there. The nature you see depicted is very different from the way it looks today.These paintings are historic documents, too, because they show us how an area has changed. Look at what’s changed and see if you can highlight what hasn’t. What are the historical causes for these changes? Now try and imagine what that nature would be like if you painted it today.

Ottobrata, 1924 Collezione privata, per cortesia della Galleria dello Scudo, Verona © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

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Nature in de Chirico’s art

The architecture that de Chirico invented also defines an absent space, a purely mental place in which Nature is relegated to a metaphysical “other place” which never shows itself. Achille Bonito Oliva alienation De Chirico manipulates space, creating «a world that appears to be simultaneously tangible a technique used, particularly and unreal, a world that changes its shape according to the angle from which in contemporary art, to turn what we observe it»4. In doing this, the painter emphasizes the mystery of his Italian Town Squares, we’re used to on its head by adopting which look realistic and logical enough at first, but which leave the viewer feeling slightly a standpoint extraneous uncomfortable. In these pictures De Chirico contravenes the rules of perspective in a way to the objects described that isn’t immediately apparent, linking incompatible spaces to one other and thus producing ‘stage sets’ that one could only find in a painting. In his works known by the collective name of Furniture in the Valley, the artist creates an alienating effect by linking incongruous elements, the natural environment and the homely touch of indoor furniture, together. Imposing cabinets and chairs stand out against vast natural landscapes, and the impact is obviously quite astonishing. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the cosmic dimension in his Mysterious Baths series boils down to a metaphysical interior in which such natural elements as rivers, rocks and trees can be seen inside a room, suns inside houses and stars reduced to the role of bedside-table ornaments, some of which are even plugged into the electric wall socket. The artist creates attrition between the natural and the artificial by showing us the outdoor world in an enclosed space and vice-versa. These experiments spawned the most extraordinary iconography: beaches made of floorboards, bath tubs with water made of wooden flooring blocks, artificial surfaces where we’d expect to see natural ones. Finally, we should mention De Chirico’s still-lifes, or rather his “silent” lives that exist in the paradox of a world which is more real than reality itself, showing that art can breathe life into nature even more than nature itself is capable of doing.

La matinée angoissante, 1912 Rovereto, MART Museo di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto, collezione VAF - Stiftung Archivio Fotografico MART © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

4 R.Arnheim, Art and Visual Perception, 1962

11 activity now where shall I put the sofa? «It has been pointed out on more than one occasion how odd beds, cabinets, dressing tables, sofas and tables can look when we suddenly see them in the street, in a setting in which we’re not used to seeing them, for instance during a removal, or in certain neighbor- hoods where tradesmen and storekeepers display them on the sidewalk outside their busi- ness premises because they are the most important articles they stock. We see all of these pieces of furniture in a new light, grouped in a strange solitude (…). The furniture, removed from the atmosphere that reigns in our homes and standing exposed on the sidewalk, sparks a feeling in us that prompts us to see the street itself in a new light. Furniture pla- ced in a deserted landscape can also make a profound impression on us. Imagine an armchair, a sofa or kitchen chairs grouped together in a plain in Greece with nothing but classical ruins all around; or in a prairie out in the Wild West. By contrast, the surrounding natural environment acquires a previously unknown look.»5

What De Chirico describes so meticulously is a poetic and compositional invention of his own, through which he manages to create a dialogue between indoor and outdoor envi- ronments with an extremely visionary impact. His idea was apparently sparked by childho- od experience. In the village in Greece where he lived with his family, frequent earthqua- kes often forced people to sleep out in the open. See if you can find some photos of the furniture in your own home, and make photocopies of them. Take the photocopies and carefully cut out the furniture around the edges. You’re going to need sofas, armchairs, chairs, tables, cabinets, beds and bedside tables… Now look for pictures of famous places like city squares or monuments, or pictures of gardens, parks, the beach, mountain pastu- res, deserts or equatorial forests. When you’ve collected everything you need, reread De Chirico’s words and let the artist’s suggestions guide you. Watch how well-known figures and objects become strangely magical when they’re set in an unusual environment.

Mobili nella valle (Furniture in the Valley), 1927 Courtesy Galleria Sacerdoti, Milano © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

5 Giorgio De Chirico, Statues, meubles et généraux, 1927

12 activity the sky in a room Go to an ironmonger’s where you can buy light copper and aluminum sheeting, and mate- rials that imitate wood, marble and plastic surfaces; even a little gift wrapping paper might come in handy. You’ll also need pictures of natural and artificial materials found both inside and outside people’s homes, and you can look for pictures of trees, grass, side- walks and materials in newspapers and magazines. Once you’ve managed to put an assor- tment of this material together, draw the inside of an apartment in schematic form, sho- wing the ceiling, the floor and a window overlooking the courtyard. Now furnish the room, changing the material the objects are made of so as to astonish your audience. The only rule you have to follow is irony: use your pictures of natural materials like grass, bark, clouds and earth to make furniture, carpets, tables and cabinets, then maybe use your phony marble and brass to compose the landscape outside the window. To increase the surprise factor, you can play on sensory opposites by making things that are really hard Spettacolo misterioso (Mysterious Spectacle), 1971 Roma, Galleria nazionale d’arte moderna e contemporanea soft, things that are really heavy light and so on, turning the humdrum into the exceptio- © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010 nal!

activity reading images Go for full-immersion in De Chirico’s metaphysical universe by diving head-first into pictu- res. Look for books with reproductions of his paintings, and collect photos of his work on the web by looking up websites devoted to his art. List the works by type, such as still-lifes, portaits, self-portraits, landscapes and so forth, then try to think what the pictures really make you feel, identifying which of your senses are metaphorically involved in enjoying the work of art. Which of the four elements - water, air, earth and fire - are included in the picture? Now jot down the words that come to your mind when you look at his paintings. Once you’ve finished pondering all of this, write a short essay on the conclusions you’ve reached, using the information and words you’ve put together. Compare what you’ve writ- ten with the other essays. Do they have anything in common? What characterizes De Chirico’s painting?

Il nuotatore nel bagno misterioso (The Bather in the Mysterious Bath), 1974 Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

13 work file

reflections on nature

Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better. Albert Einstein cosmetics Any reflection on the concept of nature has to begin with the word itself, because it’s special products and treatments taken to mean some very different things and its meaning today is far from obvious. designed to keep the skin looking We may find it useful in this context to look at the opposite of nature, in other words, fresh and young and the body at things that are artificial. We can argue that everything nature creates is “natural”, looking beautiful while what man produces artificially is extraneous to nature. But obviously that’s too rigid in real time a distinction. If we think that only things born spontaneously are natural, then that would at the very same moment rule out a whole series of products that really can’t be called artificial. Francis Bacon, as the action itself is taking place an English philosopher born in 1562, said: «We cannot command Nature except by obeying her», which basically means that to interact with nature, we have to know her. Only by obeying the laws of nature can we convey certain natural manifestations. So perhaps we should define as “natural” anything that doesn’t have a negative impact on the environment, even if it has been created by man, because it obeys its rules.

If we analyze the use of the word in advertising, we can see how it’s often used as an expedient to conjure up things like healthiness, authenticity and simplicity, to convince us how good it is to get back to nature. The food and cosmetics industries, in particular, are guilty of overusing the word. A lot of products on the supermarket shelf (from ointments, to cookies and even hot-dogs!) have the word “natural” on the packaging to hint, by the use of that word alone, that what we’re looking at here is a quality product. Using the words “nature” and “natural” sounds positive and reassuring, unlike “artificial” which we find more and more frightening despite being surrounded by artificial products in our everyday lives.

But then man’s history is basically the story of his attempt to overcome the limits and boundaries set by nature - boundaries that other animals can’t overcome - in order to create an “artificial” environment better tailored to meeting his needs. That is why we call things “natural” today that would’ve been absolutely inconceivable in the past: things like communicating in real time with someone on the other side of the planet, healing a whole list of diseases and traveling in space. The borderline between natural and artificial, between human and technological is becoming hazier and hazier. Artificial things are beginning to acquire typically human features, and technology is getting closer and closer to our bodies and to our senses, to the point where it has become almost invisible.This transformation process, which literature and sci-fi movies have helped to promote in people’s imagination, is one of the most crucial topics for debate in the contemporary world.

Paesaggio delle cascine (In the Cascine Park), 1934 Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma Foto Como, Roma © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

14 understanding nature activity midway between nature and artifice nature [ney-cher] noun To explore the difference between “natural”and “artificial”, you can play with sounds 1 The group of living beings and objects in the universe; includes the conduct of those and materials. Can you distinguish natural sounds from artificial ones? The sounds of the city, beings and all of the events linked to inanimate for instance: the roar of a passing car, bells ringing, birds chirping or the wind sighing. objects. Governed by its own order and its own Record all of the sounds and noises that you manage to identify around you, laws, it is the object of human contemplation and study. SYNONYM creation, the world; list their particular features and say whether they’re natural or artificial sounds. more specifically, the natural environment, You can do the same thing with materials. Put together a few objects taken directly the landscape, the countryside. from nature (nutshells, seashells, sand, stones, seeds) and everyday objects, recycled if possible 2 Personification, divine in the ancient world (also with initial cap.); Mother Nature is the energy (corks, pens, felt-tip pens, marbles, erasers, broken toys). After carefully examining them, at work in the universe, and is seen as having you can try separating the natural materials from the artificial ones, and filling cloth her own willpower. 3 A person’s character or temperament. pouches with them (socks are perfect for this purpose) to make original musical instruments. 4 The quality of a given substance: e.g. the nature of gold. topic for discussion natural [nach-er-uh] adjective nature, naturally natural 1 Deriving from nature or in harmony with its These are figures of speech and expressions in which the word “nature” and other words principles. from the same root take on a different nuance from their original meaning. 2 In the order of things. SYNONYM normal, obvious. 3 Which one possesses by nature; istinctive, If you can think of any other examples, add them to the list, then hold a discussion innate if referring to a quality possessed by man with your classmates to clarify their real meaning. It may help you to think up sentences or by other living creatures. 4 Not artificial, unadulterated, genuine, spontaneous. containing the various expressions. • living in touch with nature naturalness [nach-er-ul-nis] noun • unbridled nature or untamed nature 1 The quality of that which is akin to nature. SYNONYM verisimilitude. • going against nature 2 Unstudied, natural behavior or conduct. • following your own nature SYNONYM simplicity, spontaneity • living in accordance with nature naturalism [nach-er-uh-liz-uhm] noun • a trick of nature 1 A philosophical doctrine which claims that • natural resources there is no reality outside nature. 2 In art and literature, a theory which argues • natural son or daughter that works of art must be strict imitations of • natural death reality. • natural sciences naturalist [nach-er-uh-list] noun • natural consequences 1 A student of the natural sciences. 2 A follower • natural numbers of naturalism, one who acts in accordance with • natural lake the principles of naturalism • As an adjective (naturalistic) that which con- • natural fibers cerns itself with and protects nature. • talking naturally naturalize [nach-er-uh-lahyz] verb 1 To grant a foreigner nationality. 2 To obtain the nationality of the foreign country to which one has emigrated. 3 To adapt to different environments from one’s environment of origin (with reference to plant and animal species). naturally [nach-er-uh-lee] adverb 1 By nature. 2 Not artificially, with spontaneity. 3 Predictably, obviously. 4 Certainly, of course (in answers). naturism [ney-cher-ist] noun Trend that advocates a lifestyle in harmony and direct contact with nature, the basic element of which consists in eliminating clothing.

15 topic for discussion the power of nature We hear a great deal about natural disasters today, with lots of pictures on TV and in the papers. Earthquakes, floods, landslides and tsunamis all have a tragic impact, reaping numerous victims and causing massive damage. After every natural disaster we always ask ourselves whether it would’ve been possible to prevent it. People talk an awful lot about saving the environment, but how can we contribute to defending it and to respecting nature? Think about what safeguarding natural balances really means, and about the risks that we incur run from a nonchalant or unscrupulous use of the environment.

Ego quoque in Arcadia vixi, 1923 Collezione privata, Roma © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

Bosco (Wood), first Terties Collezione Privata © Fondazione Giorgio e Isa de Chirico, Roma by SIAE 2010

16 some examples of nature in philosophy

Principal Doctrines, Epicurus

It would not be possible to dissolve all fear of the most important things if we did not know the nature of the universe, but lived in suspicious fear of the things of which the myths tell us; it would not be possible to seize pleasures in their purity without knowledge of nature.

Epicurus (Samos 341 BCE, Athens 270/71 BCE) was the founder of the famous school in Athens known as the “garden of Epicurus”. He thought that the reality around us was made up of minute atoms of various shapes and sizes moving in a completely empty space. These atoms are the smallest particles of all of the elements that make up nature. Everything that we see is the result of the chance combination of these atoms, even man himself! Nature, so ordered and with such clearly defined rules, is the result of an endless process of trial and error. In Epicurus’s view, real knowledge is knowledge of the principles that cause these atoms to move, and it is through knowledge of those principles that man can overcome his fears and live a peaceful life.

De Rerum Natura,Titus Lucretius Caro

Since for thee I prove the supreme law of Gods and sky, and the primordial germs of things unfold, Whence Nature all creates, and multiplies and fosters all, and whither she resolves Each in the end when each is overthrown. This ultimate stock we have devised to name Procreant atoms, matter, seeds of things, or primal bodies, as primal to the world.

Many scholars believe that the De Rerum Natura is an unfinished book; this hypothesis bears witness to the skill evinced by Lucretius (Campania 98 or 96 BCE - Rome 55-53 BCE) in using an analysis of the cosmos to transmit an open lesson that it is not an attempt to impart predefined values but to provide the ethical tools to allow people to freely decide what to believe in. He doesn’t offer mankind a divine truth but a human, universal truth for all. He argues that storms are regulated by the laws of physics and that there is no need for prayers to prevent them. The gods, if they do exist, are uninterested in the world and they do not govern its processes. Religion must therefore move forward hand in hand with the study of nature, which calms the soul and allows one to understand the real “nature of things”.

Émile, Jean-Jacques Rousseau

We are born weak, we need strength; helpless we need aid; foolish we need reason. All that we lack at birth, all that we need when we come to man’s estate, is the gift of education. This education comes from nature, from men or from things. The inner growth of our organs and faculties is the education of nature, the use we learn to make of our growth is the edu- cation of men, what we gain by our experience of our surroundings is the education of things. We are each taught by three masters.

Rousseau (Geneva 1712 - Ermenonville 1778) ponders a primitive condition, a hypothetical state of nature when man was no different from other beasts and knew no social life. Only in the first social groups, following natural changes, did man develop what Rousseau considered to be his unique features: speech, feelings, skills and the arts. In his educational novel Émile, he describes a human nature that was originally good but that was subsequently ruined by bad governments. If children are to be shielded from negative influence, they need to be brought up in the solitude of the countryside, in close touch with nature and their teacher. Only once they have been fortified and their character has been formed will they be able to face life in society.

17 in literature

Dialogue Between Nature and an Icelander, Giacomo Leopardi

In the distance he saw an enormous bust, which he at first though was of stone, like the colossal figures seen by him many years before on Easter Island. But on closer inspection, he found it was the body of a woman of huge proportions, seated on the ground and holding herself erect by resting her back and elbows against a mountain. This was no statue, but a living person, with a face that inspired both admiration and terror, and jet black eyes and hair. She stared at him intently for some time, without speaking, but at last said: NATURE Who are you? And what are you doing here, where no man has been before? ICELANDER I am a poor Icelander, fleeing from Nature, and having fled from her all my life to every corner of the globe, now I seek to escape her here. NATURE So flies the squirrel from the rattlesnake, only to drop exhausted into the latter’s jaws. I am she from whom you fly.

This is the most famous of the Operette morali [Moral Works] by Giacomo Leopardi (Recanati 1798 - Naples 1837). It is a dialogue between an Icelander, traveling the world in search of place where he can live in peace, and the huge figure of a woman, an extremely beautiful and stern personification of Nature. The traveler is troubled by the inconvenience Nature constantly causes and this meeting offers him a chance to demand an explanation.

The Tigers of Mompracem, Emilio Salgari

Anchors were raised, sails were set and the expedition sailed out of the bay accompanied by the cheering of the crowds on the shore and on the bastions. The sky was clear and the sea as calm as a lake, but a few clouds could be seen to the south, their menacing shape heralding no good. Sandokan, who was not just an excellent telescope but also a good barometer, sensed an impending storm but didn’t worry.“ If the men are incapable of stopping me, then the storm certainly won’t. I feel strong enough to brave even the fury of nature”, he said.

The Tigers of Mompracem is one of the adventure stories written by Emilio Salgari (Verona 1862 - Turin 1911) with the pirate Sandokan as the main character. Salgari never traveled personally to the tropical countries in which he set his novels, but he managed to accurately describe distant places and exotic atmospheres by combining his fervent imagination with the careful study of books and maps.

Marcovaldo, Italo Calvino

This Marcovaldo didn’t have the right sort of eye for city life. Posters, traffic lights, store windows, neon signs and billboards, though designed to attract people’s attention, never caught his eye. His gaze ran over them like sand in the desert. But a leaf turning yellow on the branch of a tree, a feather caught in a roof tile, he never missed those. There wasn’t a horsefly on a horse’s back, a woodworm hole in a plank, or a piece of fig peel on the sidewalk that Marcovaldo failed to notice or to think about, which was how he discovered the changing seasons, his deepest desires and the wretchednes of his present existence.

Marcovaldo, by Italo Calvino (Santiago de Las Vegas 1923 - Siena 1985), is a book that tells the story of the leading character and his family, who live in a city but who are constantly on the lookout for nature which reveals itself to them in small details: a pigeon, toadstools in a flower bed, wasps, a rabbit. This nature is mischievous, but not delibe- rately nasty: the toadstools are poisonous, the swarm of wasps starts stinging, and the fog prevents everyone from seeing anything. The author wrote: «In the city of concrete and tarmac, Marcovaldo was looking for Nature. But does Nature still exist? What he found was a mischievous, phony nature jeopardized by artificial life».

18 credits project Educational Services Art Workshop director Paola Vassalli with Giulia Franchi curated by Alessia Di Clemente with Blume Gra reading tips Alessia Di Clemente the Scaffale d’arte suggestions for further reading Blume Gra for adults organization R. Arnheim, Arte e percezione visiva, Feltrinelli, Milano 2002 Elena Fierli J. Cocteau, Giorgio de Chirico. Il mistero laico, Abscondita 2007 with Giulia Franchi E. Coen (a cura di), Metafisica, Electa 2003 English translation G. de Chirico, Memorie della mia vita, Bompiani 2008 Stephen Tobin G. de Chirico, Statues, meubles et généraux, in “Bulletin de L’Effort Moderne”, Parigi 1927 graphic design G. Dorfles, Artificio e natura, Skira 2003 thewashingmachine.it L. Spagnoli, Lunga vita di Giorgio de Chirico, Longanesi, Milano 1971 N. Ubaldo e P.Klauss,L’aura di Giorgio de Chirico. Arte emicrania e pittura metafisica, Mimesis 2003 information activities and workshops kindergarten and primary school for children The Silent Nature of Objects I. Calvino, Il barone rampante, Mondadori 1993 Tuesday through Friday, three sessions I. Calvino, Marcovaldo, Mondadori 1993 at 10 am - 11.30 am C. Demilly, Giorgio de Chirico, la face cachée du monde, Palette, 2009 admission euro 4.00 (kindergarten free) G. Di Vita, Cecilia e il Mistero del sogno, Città Nuova 2001 activities euro 80.00 per class group, B. Fontanel, Tous les paysages - Les paysages dans l’art, Palette 2009 1 free accompanying faculty member C. Francucci (a cura di), A divided circle, I sensibili, ART’È 2003 every 10 students two classes can accommodated L. Lionni, Federico, Babalibri, Milano 2005 at once, with different activities P. Marabotto, Giorgio de Chirico. Perché mettere tutto in piazza?, Lapis 2004 max 25 students per class B. Munari, Disegnare un albero, Corraini 2004 reservations required (no charge) B. Munari, Il mare come artigiano, Corraini 1995 B. Munari, Rose nell’insalata, Corraini 2004 children aged 3 to 6 accompanied by their parents A. Peppin, Natura nell’arte, Giannino Stoppani 1992 Let’s play with…objects from A to Z G. Quarzo, Storie di pietra e altro, Hopefulmonster 1997 Saturday from 4 pm to 6 pm S. Vilella, Interno metafisico con biscotti, Coconino Press 2009 Sunday from 11 am to 1 pm activities euro 8.00 web internet children aged 7 to 11 www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/de_chirico_giorgio.html The Silent Nature of Objects www.dechirico.it/ Sunday from 11 am to 1 pm and from www.fondazionedechirico.it/ 4 pm to 6 pm activity + admission to exhibition euro 12.00 reservations recommended euro 1.50 please try to show up at least 15 min. before the workshop is due to start special offer for families activity + admission to exhibition euro 10.00 per child admission to exhibition euro 7.50 per adult (max 2) children in the 7 to 11 age group who attend two workshops in the major exhibitions series information and reservations in a single calendar month at the Palazzo delle Esposizioni schools 06 39967 200 and the Scuderie del Quirinale individual visitors 06 39967 500 can buy a special inclusive workshop ticket for euro 18.00 Monday through Friday Palazzo delle Esposizioni from 9 am to 6 pm Via Nazionale 194, 00184 Rome Saturday from 9 am to 2 pm www.palazzoesposizioni.it 19