Giorgio Morandi 1890-1964 : 'nothing is more abstract than reality'

This is an exceptional selection of works documenting the entire creative career of the Italian painter, from his powerful beginnings through his Metaphysical painting phase and into the hazy atmospheres of his later works. It includes 116 masterpieces arranged into self-portraits, still-lifes, landscapes and flowers, the four major themes that characterise his work. The collection represents all the various expressive techniques used by Giorgio Morandi over the years: paint, etching, drawing and watercolour. The works have been obtained from major American museums such as the MoMA of New York, the National Gallery of Washington, the Phillips Collection and the Hirshorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, the Fogg Art Museum in Cambridge (Massachusetts), the Iowa Museum of Art and the Smith College Museum of Art in Northampton, as well as from famous private collections such as those of Roberto Longhi, Cesare Brandi, Lamberto Vitali, James Trall Soby, and John Rewald.