Description of the picture:
Naked sitting on a sofa – Amedeo Modigliani. 1917. Oil on canvas. 100 x 60 cm
In the period from 1916 to 1917, Amedeo Modigliani began working on the order of Zborovsky on a series of paintings in the bold nude genre. A professional painter made more than 30 paintings depicting naked maids in various poses and angles. Picture "Nude sitting on a sofa" – the real gem of this ambitious, famous series.
We see a beautiful lady. A narrow, silk peignoir covers her breast a little. The face is facing the viewer. You can note a cautious nose, colorful, sensual lips. She is both bold and chaste. An imposing, relaxed posture speaks of freedom, but at the same time the heroine bashfully covered her chest with her hand and threw her foot over foot, leaving only the thigh on display.
Amazing palette and technique of Modigliani. The master focused on red, brown and flesh tones. With all this, the letter is distinguished by density and fullness. Warm colors are framed by a thin, barely noticeable line. With amazing filigree, the painter managed to convey barely tangible nudity: sweet bliss, silky skin, the beauty of a limp, relaxed body. Light chiaroscuro creates a volume that is literally on the verge of a planar image. The girl from the canvas is not perfect according to the modern canons (well, according to the canons of the times of Modigliani), but you feel immediately that she is incomparable and amazing, as soon as my gaze begins to study the canvas of the great master.
The girl is thoughtful and calm. Peacefulness reigns in this masterpiece along with a hidden history – I want to penetrate the thoughts and feelings of this beautiful heroine.
The picture (among its own kind) made a lot of noise in society. She was not exhibited at the exhibition in Paris for long – the city authorities and the police ordered to remove the shameless canvases from general view. Modigliani scolded for debauchery and disrespect for women in principle.
Today, an incredible picture is evaluated in a completely different way. More precisely, we can say that it is priceless. Although the specific cost "Nude on the couch" still has – in 2010 at a famous auction "Sotheby’s" the canvas left the auction for almost 69 million cu, thus breaking the price record of paintings by Modigliani. Currently, the masterpiece is in a private collection.
Art historians and researchers of the work of Amedeo Modigliani are unanimous – in his paintings of the nude genre, the artist surpassed himself. It is enough to look at the presented work in order to make sure of it uncompromisingly."