Mid 20th Century Italian Mirrored Frame With an Abstract Design on Textured Paper

Details

Description

The frame surrounding the print is a particularly original and unusual piece. It was recently crafted by an elderly master … Read more The frame surrounding the print is a particularly original and unusual piece. It was recently crafted by an elderly master cabinetmaker, whose workshop is located in Florence’s liveliest and most creative neighborhood: San Frediano, known for its charming artisan shops, where manual labor and manufacturing traditions continue to take center stage. The artisan has inserted four shiny, flush-cut mirrors along the sides of the frame’s flat surface, angling them inward. This design creates a striking optical effect that enhances the overall brightness and lends the composition an elegant and sophisticated character. The print is framed by a refined cream-colored mat, accented by a thin black border. The drawing is an abstract work created on special paper using mixed media, combining watercolor, diluted tempera, and ink. The work clearly belongs to the abstract and expressionist movements prevalent in the first half of the 1960s. The work bears a (illegible) signature and is dated 1964. The composition stands out for its dynamic interweaving of graphic marks and chromatic transparencies, developed in shades of green, black, and ochre, which construct a layered visual structure of remarkable expressive intensity. The pictorial language evokes the European—particularly French and Italian—aesthetics of Art Informel (or gestural abstraction) and Tachisme, movements that developed between the 1950s and 1960s, with clear affinities to the gestural experiments of artists such as Emilio Scanavino and Georges Mathieu. This is a poetics that prioritizes gestural improvisation and the expressive use of material, approaching in some respects American Abstract Expressionism—as in the works of Franz Kline or Robert Motherwell—while maintaining a more lyrical and introspective sensibility. Of particular interest is also the paper used: a thick, compact paper characterized by a pronounced grain and a slightly stiff texture to the touch. This material substrate contributes significantly to the work’s expressive power. The frame with the print constitutes a unique piece, endowed with appreciable historical value and, at the same time, great decorative quality, capable of lending character and personality to any setting. The condition is good, with slight signs of wear consistent with its age. Dimensions: width 59 cm; height 72 cm; depth 5 cm. Dimensions of the drawing: width 36 cm; height 48 cm. See less