Giorgio Morandi and the Silence of the Still Life with Dr. Jennie Hirsh

This seminar focuses on the life and work of Giorgio Morandi, Bolognese painter who left behind a compelling legacy of quietly haunting still lives as well delicate landscapes. Carefully retracing his professional career against his fascist leanings, this conversation will delve into the deeper meaning of Morandi's muted compositions, seemingly innocuous yet the product of not only his artistic vision but also his political opportunism during a fraught moment in Italian history. Combining visual analysis with the historical record, we will also consider how and when he appropriate lessons gleaned from French modernism, and especially the work of Paul Cézanne, an argument on which Dr. Hirsh has  published her research.

Led by an expert on modern and contemporary Italian art, architecture, and design, Dr. Jennie Hirsh, this Conversation will not only explore the art of Morandi but also contextualize him within the larger history of Italian art in the first half of the twentieth century.. Designed to inform curiosity as well as future travels, participants will come away with an increased  understanding of the life and work of this enigmatic painter.