Curators at Work - College of William and Mary

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1 9 5 3 MArino MArini (italian, 1901-1980) horse and rider, 1953 ink and gouache on paper 24 in. x 16 15/16 in. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. ralph lamberson 1987.034 20 | Curators at Work
Marino Marini was an Italian sculptor, painter, and graphic artist who specialized in equestrian sculptures rendered in an expressive Cubism. Born in Pistoia, Italy, he enrolled at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Florence in 1917. As a student, Marini was influenced by the art of Mediterranean antiquity, International Gothic style, and the medieval renaissance; his work throughout the rest of his career continued to draw on these styles. 1 His favored subjects of focus were the equestrian theme, the myth of the knight, the Pomonas, portraits, and circus characters. 2 Marini’s first major solo exhibition showed in Milan in 1932, followed by exhibitions at the Venice Biennale, the Milan Triennale, and the Rome Quadriennale. 3 During the 1950s and 1960s, a series of his exhibitions opened throughout Europe and in New York City, bringing him international acclaim, as well as several prestigious prizes. The Museo Marino Marini opened in Florence in 1973, and today contains a permanent collection of 182 works that includes sculptures, paintings, drawings, and engravings. 4 Marini died in Viareggio, Italy, in 1980. Marini’s 1953 Horse and Rider is ink and gouache on paper. The painting is composed of an underlying green layer covered by a rapidly brushed field of blue, laid over by a warm ochre field whose shape evokes an ancient tablet. Before the blue paint dried Marini went over it in ochre, creating a layered look between colors that calls to mind a palimpsest of antiquity. He initially formed the main body of ochre using short, horizontal brushstrokes before adding longer, sweeping strokes around the edges. The figures of a horse with a mounted rider are centered, drawn in fine lines of black pen. Marini’s original signature is scratched into the paint between the horse’s forelegs, but was later redone in more visible ink in the lower right corner. A swath of yellow was added to the bottom of the main field to make space for the signature, with the date signed above his name; this singular wide stroke is spontaneous in its positioning and application. The horse and rider were initially outlined in pen, but Marini returned with a brush to add shadows to the figures for relief in a manner that is telling of his background and training as a sculptor. The horse has only three legs, with one rear leg missing, but still strikes as a strong figure. In contrast, the man, whose body is boxy and unrefined, sits clutching one arm in a suggestion of weakness or injury, possibly connected to sexual potency. His face, though drawn in crude lines, shows an unsmiling expression. The rider’s leg shares a line with the horse’s left foreleg, combining the figures and signifying a close association between the two. Another Marini painting, Cavallo e Cavaliere from 1952, is done in gouache and India ink on paper, employing a similar arrangement of a horse and rider in profile, again showing only three legs of the horse. The two figures are set on a field of beige with an underlying muted brown that shows around the edges of the figures. As in his 1953 Horse and Rider, the body of the rider is more geometric than the organic shape of his mount, but the man is faceless and his expression indecipherable, whereas the horse’s face is detailed. Both paintings belong to a group of Marini’s works in the early 1950s executed in gouache and lithograph that are reminiscent of ancient drawings rubbed by time. The “horse and rider” is a characteristic archetype of Marini, and his style in the early 1950s comes away from strongly cubist pieces—the horses are more attenuated, with almost stick-like legs. Marini’s work of this time period often depicts a chaotic world, in which man has little control over his steed, which grows wilder and more stubborn in each rendition. Marini’s style uses vivid, contrasting colors, and graphical elements like lines and dashes of color to convey Marini’s feelings about the future, which he expressed as the belief that “we are approaching the end of the world.” 5 1Marino Marini Biography, Art Directory, http://www.marini-marino. com/. 2Museo Marino Marini – Foundation – Permanent collection, Marino Marini Museum, http://www.museomarinomarini.it/section. php?page=fondazione&sezione=10. Simone Peer ‘12 3 Marino Marini Biography. 4 Museo Marino Marini – Foundation – Permanent collection. 5 Marino Marini (1901-1980) | Piccolo cavaliere, Christie’s, http://www. christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?from=salesummary&intObje ctID=5313318. 16 Memoranda for 16 Artists | 21
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Page 6 and 7: 1 8 0 5 Attributed to Gilles-louis
Page 8 and 9: 1 8 9 3 henri-eDMonD DelACroix, cal
Page 10 and 11: 1 9 0 9 Arthur B. DAvies (American,
Page 12 and 13: 1 9 2 3 Attilio PiCCirilli (America
Page 14 and 15: 1 9 2 9 BlAnChe lAzzell (American,
Page 16 and 17: 1 9 3 7 thoMAs hArt Benton (America
Page 18 and 19: 1 9 4 5 MAx WeBer (American, 1881-1
Page 22 and 23: 1 9 6 4 MAn rAY (American, 1890-197
Page 24 and 25: 1 9 6 9 PABlo PiCAsso (spanish, 188
Page 26 and 27: 1 9 7 2 ClAes olDenBurG (American,
Page 28 and 29: 1 9 7 4 JiM Dine (American, b. 1935
Page 30 and 31: 1 9 7 8 JAsPer Johns (American, b.
Page 32 and 33: 1 9 8 8 DonAlD K. sultAn (American,
Page 34 and 35: 1 9 8 8 WAYne thieBAuD (American, b
Page 36 and 37: 2 0 0 3 JAune QuiCK-to-see sMith (n
Page 38 and 39: 2 0 0 3 JAune QuiCK-to-see sMith (n

Curators at Work - College of William and Mary

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