The story of the arrival of this book must be told. I asked for a book review copy months ago after that I watched an interview of Mr. Caroli on TV. "Look: it sounds an interesting book. I want to review it." Considering that a branch of this publishing house sends via postal mail I waited patiently, when weeks later I was reached by an e-mail. At the publicity department of UTET people were pretty upset: the book returned refused. I wouldn't refuse any book, I am a book addicted. I thought immediately: oh, no! Again?
I explained in detail what it was going on in my corner of the world and bad waters I was sailing giving another address. At the end we sorted out the problem but it took several months before I could see the copy of this stunning hardback book of history of art in my hands.
Now: considering all the rest of books innested in the early 1920s that I read and reviewed I thought that maybe it was arrived the moment of touching art as well.
Flavio Caroli in his Elogio della
It's substantially a turbillon of artistic movements, the so-called avant-guards, painters, paintings; Caroli synthetizes very well a century pretty problematic with all the possible changes seen in the world and society. Let's remember that painting is a great representative of it; it follows the turmoil, happiness, joy, sadness that a society "transmits" thanks to peace, wars, contradictions and the XX century, no one can says the opposite, has been a strong century with two sad world wars and endless atrocities of every kind and fight in various part of the world for obtaining different rights.
Written with the structure of the dialogue between a niece, interested in art and his uncle, this book is the internal dialogue of mr.Caroli himself. Considering the friendly approach, it is a great book for someone that must still be introduced at the knowledge of art, because it's intriguing, because there are a lot of thematic that later people can develops with other books, and painters less known can be appreciated. A book of art must be read but it can be also a valid visual instrument of approach for starting to love art. A first step. Trust me. I experienced this.
The first time I picked up a book of art I still didn't read but I got lost for paintings of Modigliani, Van Gogh, Monet. It was the scholastic book of art of my brother. I spent hours looking at that paintings and since there I love art and painting.
So, don't be shy; sure the art of the XX century maybe needs to be explained, because we are not in the Renaissance, there is not perfection; there is a different research of color, intimacy, feelings, contrasts. It is a "problematic painting" because it is realized in a problematic time, I would add.
The idea of been lost in the world, sad, happy at the same time, the idea of a man living alone in a paradisiac, terrible place is a fascination donated by the Romanticism. Man is little and undefined in confrontation with nature, and nature, trips, roads, are just metaphores of our trip in this existence. William Turner in England was in grade of giving a fresh look at Romanticism mixing with it the modernity of the arrival of technology seen with the eyes of a train. Nature remains strong, like also strong is the advent of this new way of communication.
While Delacroix in France painted The Freedom seen it classically Gericault introduces not just a new way of painting, but also scientif paintings. Secluded in a manicomy after the realization of his most famous painting, he will try to focus his attention on the problematic of the other guests of the structure, the Salpetriere, opening a new way of paintings; sufferance, madness.
Realists could be cryptic as it does a painting by Courbet probably an homage according to the critic of art to masonry without forgettin the vulva.
The Impressionism with Claude Monet will make the difference in the history of art. Impressionism was born for giving a new answer at the concept of life and space. Yes: it is a story of light and conception of the meaning of light for these new painters; Impressionism captures the moment; yes, like it happens with photography; under many aspects these two states of art can be compared; it's a story of moments, lights, imagining that nothing will return as it was before.
Going outside becomes a priority.
Outside.
Nature is a real heaven. Impressionists will donate calm, relaxation and at the same time, will donate a vivid description of what it was going on in a certain moment of the day and how light changed changing in the various hours of the day, giving a different idea of landscapes, monuments taken in consideration. Not only: light is not anymore seen and represented as did painters as Vermeer but becomes a fusion with the rest of the landscape portrayed.
If painting gives shapes to a new style at the same time sculpture follows this trend, giving a new idea of reality: shape becomes always more confused and deform, while matter and light are the main protagonists.
To Caroli Van Gogh represents the conclusive experience of the self-destructive individualism of the late Romanticism.
The Espressionist is seen through the eyes of Gustave Klimt, the biggest representative of this movement and in France by Henri Matisse not just a painter but a writer as well.
The second part of the Espressionists will see as protagonists Vasilij Kandinskij in a strained moment for the world. Mediation for these painter in art was represented by colors and the meaning of colors important because the add musicality. If Vasilij was searching for color and musicality, Meidner searched for all the possible deformities afflicting the existence; physicals or psychologicals. In Italy we had a representative of the movement in Viani. He searched all the time of representing, thanks also to his diversified human experiences, the latest ones, from pronstitutes to homeless.
Picasso and Cubism. It's a story of influences, of historical moments again. James Joyce and his books, Marcel Prous and the Research, the XX century adds the author is the century of the Relativity. In this context was born one of the most famous painting of Pablo Picasso Les Mademoiselle d'Avignone 1907.
Futurists at the same time tried to capture rebellions, moments of agitation. After all these artists anticipated as also did Picasso the theory of space and time by Albert Einstein.
Carrà, Boccioni two eminents Futurists.
The Methaphysics painting will see as protagonists Giorgio De Chirico and Alberto Savinio. Reality is lived in an hallucinating state. In Les Parents by Savinio the heads of the two protagonists are the ones of animals. The man is naked, while the lady's got in her hands a posy. Behind them, flames and destruction. Joan Mirò surrealist will enchant the reader with his visionarity, although the author won't save Salvador Dalì, a pretty embarassing protagonist for contemporary art, he adds. A chapter explains also what happened during the 1930s, and what it meant art during the years of European dictatorship.
Modern art couldn't include painters from the USA, like Hopper and a final chapter is dedicated to the most remarkable painting of the XX according to Caroli.
This book is remarkable because we will see through the eyes of Caroli and the paintings of the painters of the various avant-guards what happened in the XX century and why art became what it is today.Confusions, wars, conflicts, new existential problems not existing in the past centuries brought an answer of an art always more undefined, always more sufferent, always more at the research of the human state of the soul of the painter and of the meaning of the society, always more focused in the reality and in the moment; in the now. In the XX century, paintings started to be more than in the past centuries a mirror of the human condition.
Is it possible to give shape at the most important fears, horrors, devastations? In what way it is possible to represent the social, political condition of people? Artists are, sometimes priviledged also in periods of oppression but they live the tumults of the world where they live in and they absorb the social, political ideas and transformations of their countries. The art that you will see is the mirror of one of the most conflictual centuries of the entire humanity.
I want also to add that art is a key for understanding history, so if you have children allergic at history, try to help them mixing historical informations with art. It will be a success.
Highly highly recommended to everyone.
I thank so much, hoooray we did it! UTET for the physical copy of the book.
Anna Maria Polidori
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