Modigliani

Fantastic exhibition at Tate Modern looking at the life and work of Amedeo Modigliani.

This exhibition combined a chronological approach and theming very well and gave a view  not only of the artist but also of a circle of friends and fellow artists. I loved the opening section on his time in Paris before the First World War where you can see him playing with different styles and the influences of other artists. I loved a wall of four pictures of women illustrating these different styles. I liked the film of Paris at this time which really added to the atmosphere.

It was lovely to have a room devoted to Modigliani’s sculpture as his original intention was to be a sculptor. The room focused on female head studies and again showed a variety of styles. I liked the more minimal works with flat eyes.

My favourite room looked at his friends in Paris at the start of the First World War which was like being at a wonderful party at the time. Faces included Beatrice Hastings, his mistress at the time, who sounds fascinating and I want to find out more about her. My favorite picture in the show was in this room was of a beautiful portrait of a young woman standing beside a door. It’s not known who she was but from her dress and poise I felt she was an artist.

It wasn’t until the eighth room what we got the flat faced female nudes that Modigliani is most known for. These in fact only made up 10% of his output. I love the fact he hints at the status of the women by their jewelry and the fact they reflect a new sense of independence for women earning a living by modelling. It was interesting to see some of the identified.

The last room was poignant as it showed a small, close group of people who surrounded Modigliani in the last year of his life, his wife, his agent and his agent’s wife. I found the picture of his pregnant wife so sad as she killed herself just a few days after his death and before the baby was born.

It was a lovely touch for the first and last pictures in the show to be self-portraits and to realise the show only covered 14 years of work.

Closes on 2 April 2018

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