Giorgio Morandi

Giorgio Morandi was an Italian painter famous for understated, subtle still lifes. Born in Bologna in 1890, he spent most of his life in the same city, painting the same simple objects again and again, bottles, jars, bowls, and vases arranged on a table. From these humble things he drew endless variations of shape, color, and muted light.

His dusty tones and delicate arrangements give his small paintings a still, meditative quality that rewards slow, careful looking. He mostly avoided the noise of the art world, living modestly and working with monk-like devotion. Morandi's restrained still lifes are now cherished for their understated beauty and their deep sense of stillness.