Andreas Petrou-Zeniou
History 10
3/9/18
Atmosphere: De Chirico’s Secret Ingredient
Although Giorgio de Chirico was born in Greece, and lived in modernist centers such as Paris and Munich, De Chirico claimed Florence as the birthplace of his “metaphysical” style. While in Florence, De Chirico was exposed to Nietzsche’s The Birth Of Tragedy, which championed dreaming as a device to achieve unprecedented depth in art, poetry, and philosophy. The Birth Of Tragedy resonated with De Chirico who came to revere Nietzsche. De Chirico sought the dream-like atmosphere which Nietzsche claimed to be so productive for the creation of profound art. This search culminated in Florence’s Piazza Santa Croce, where De Chirico had the artistic revelation which prompted him to paint his first metaphysical work: The Enigma of an Autumn Afternoon. Although Florence was not a center of the avant-garde like Paris or Munich, the interplay between the elements of philosophy and architecture in Italy allowed De Chirico to develop his own distinctive art style. These social elements were not universally inspirational — Florence, after all, never saw the artistic culture that Paris did — but they profoundly inspired De Chirico as an individual. Modernists embraced the inspirations that appealed to them as individuals. Modernism freed the artist of classical, 19th century conventions, allowing the artist, radically, to pursue what resonated with them on a personal level.
Nietzsche’s essay, The Birth of Tragedy, exposed De Chirico to revolutionary ideas about solitude and dreaming in the creation of art, prompting De Chirico to search for a unique, Nietzschean atmosphere with which to imbue his works. De Chirico was first exposed Nietzsche by the italian journalist, Giovanni Papini, who wrote reviews of Nietzsche’s essays. As such, Nietzsche’s philosophies had significant presence in the Florentine zeitgeist. De Chirico was so impressed by Nietzsche, that he continued to read his essay: The Birth of Tragedy. In this essay, Nietzsche claims that “it was in a dream that the great artist saw the delightful anatomy of superhuman existence.” In other words, Nietzsche believes that dreams, the ultimate state of solitude, is fundamental to find a more profound truth beyond “human existence.” The dream state opened to the “artist” an entirely new worldview. Nietzsche champions the use of art to discover a new worldview; he refers to Socrates as “the pioneer of a brand new style of culture, art, and morality, into that world, a scrap of which we would count it an honour to catch.” Not only is this quote a representation of Nietzsche’s reverence of the ancient Greeks, it asserts that the pioneering of new “art” is ‘honorable’. This valuation of the “new” and of dreams as a device to discover it inspired De Chirico. He sought to create a dream-like atmosphere in his paintings, in order to imbue them with more profound meaning. In a letter to Fritz Gartz, De Chirico describes his own paintings as “small (the biggest is 50 x 70 cm, but each of them is an enigma, each contains a poem, an atmosphere (Stimmung) and a promise that you can not find in other paintings.” De Chirico says that his paintings derive their power not through their size, but rather, from the Nietzschean atmosphere of melancholy that he described earlier. Indeed, De Chirico uses the words “atmosphere” and “enigma” interchangeably. He sees “atmosphere” as a profoundly moving element in art, and the source of truth in art. It was in the piazzas of Florence, Italy, where De Chirico ultimately discovered the “enigma” of “atmosphere.”
De Chirico’s search for Nietzschean solitude and atmosphere was answered in Florence, Italy. He was moved by the atmosphere of mystery that he found in the Italian piazzas and the classical architecture element the city. In Florence, De Chirico led a relatively solitary life, spurred by his own illness. As such, De Chirico allowed himself to be inspired by his surroundings, without the interference of human interaction. In the italian piazzas, De Chirico was moved by “The terrible mystery that he has perceived in the cities of the peninsula [Italy].” This “terrible mystery” was the answer to De Chirico’s search for Nietzschean “atmosphere.” The atmosphere of mystery was exemplified by the piazzas’ vast openness and long shadows in the afternoon. Moreover, De Chirico used this “atmosphere” to find the deeper truth outlined in Neitzsche’s essays. De Chirico says in an interview, that it was in Florence where he found “a Metaphysical sense, a feeling of tranquillity.” This “metaphysical” sense is a harkens back to Neitzsche’s assertion of dreaming as a path to “superhuman” truth. Indeed, the atmosphere of the Florentine piazzas led De Chirico to a transcendental truth. It was in the Piazza Santa Croce where De Chirico had the famed vision which prompted him to paint his first metaphysical work:The Enigma of an Autumn Afternoon
Inspired by the Piazza Santa Croce (right), De Chirico realistically incorporates classical architecture and sculpture. Unlike other modernists, De Chirico does not fully reject classical architectural forms, instead he embraces them to build a mysterious, almost dreamlike, Nietzschean atmosphere. Even so, De Chirico takes certain liberties in order to build the dreamlike, nietzschean atmosphere of mystery and melancholy that was the goal of his works. For example, De Chirico keeps the two characters faceless; They face away from the viewer harkening back to the “terrible mystery” that De Chirico observed in Italy. Similarly, the headless statue is one of the focal points of the painting; It stands alone in the plaza, giving it a mysterious presence. Just like the figures next to it, the statue faces away from the viewer, adding to the nietzschean atmosphere of melancholy and mystery. According to professor Kenneth Bendiner, the atmosphere of mystery is further exemplified by the “long shadows” of the autumn afternoon. The Enigma of an Autumn Afternoon was the representation and the culmination of De Chirico’s search for a dreamlike, mysterious, Nietzschean atmosphere and therefore, “superhuman truth.”
Ultimately, although Florence was not a center for the avant-garde like Paris, De Chirico was most inspired in Italy. De Chirico’s inspiration in Italy was a process of profound revelation where he used the artistic element of atmosphere to discover “superhuman truth.” This process of inspiration is a testament to the individualistic nature of modernism. Instead of being confined to restrictive 19th century norms, modernists allowed themselves to create art that uniquely spoke to them instead of to a consumerist public. In this way, modernism was a strongly individual endeavour, where the artist could choose a subject that was most meaningful. De Chirico built his art on a personal revelation he had in the Piazza Santa Croce. Kandinsky was similar, he constructed art based on his own synesthetic talents. Art was no longer directed towards the consumer. Instead, artists could build radical paintings that resonated with them as an individual. Indeed, the modernist process of inspiration was a visceral one, in which the artist could find deeply personal “superhuman truths.” In this respect, modernism served as a rejection of enlightenment era rationalism. Where enlightenment thinkers found progress and truth through the scientific method, the modernist found “truth” through a process of irrational revelation.