66. Intimacy

Ressu's specificity consists of rendering the reality of constructive volumes and rhythms. For his art, the direct contact with reality is vital, in order to express emotion. This is notably successful in portraits, where he evokes the internal life of his models, using the calm and the purity of lines. He is also concerned with the precise contour definition. In his works, he uses a mostly linear rhythm and a luminous chromatic, attempting to emphasize the characters' silhouettes. The period of time between 1920 and 1950 coincides with the artist's interest for painting nudes. Michelangelo used to state that "an artist's culmination is proven by the perfect drawing of a nude". However, Camil Ressu focuses on overcoming Academism and anatomic knowledge, pointing rather on defining his own ideal of beauty. Therefore, he uses the nude as a means of expression, combining the muscular vigour of the Renaissance with Baroque voluptuousness. The characters in the artist's feminine nudes are mostly represented in a vigorous way, bursting with vital energy and fertility.

References

ENESCU, T., "Camil Ressu", Publishing House of the Academy of the Romanian People's Republic", Bucharest, 1958. ENESCU, Theodor, "C. Ressu", Meridiane Publishing House, Bucharest, 1984.

Dimensions

width 49 cm, height 69 cm, custom 69 × 49 cm

Description

oil on cardboard, signed bottom left, with black, "C. Ressu"

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