79. Still Life with Watermelons and Grapes [1945]

On a checked table cloth, Alexandru Ciucurencu frames a few slices of watermelon. The core of the fruit, depicted in strong shades of pink, becomes, thus, the focal point of the painting. We will notice that, in his still life paintings, the warmer the dominant colour, the higher the quantity of warm shades surrounding it. A colourist by excellence, he matches tones and shapes, hence creating a harmonious assembly. He learns from Pallady the principles for still life composition, from Tonitza he takes over the necessary tools which help him create in a decorative manner, and from Petrașcu he understands the importance of using black. The black line, initially curved, and afterwards abrupt or fragmented, emphasizes the colour contrasts. For Ciucurencu, colour has the first priority. The colour offers him unlimited possibilities for artistic expression, which would lead to a secondary approach to objects and shapes.

References

FLOREA, Vasile, "Ciucurencu", ARC 2000 Publishing House, Bucharest, 1995. OPRESCU, George, "Alexandru Ciucurencu", Meridiane Publishing House, Bucharest, 1962. JIANU, Ionel, "A. Ciucurencu", State Publishing House for Literature and Art, Bucharest, 1958.

Dimensions

width 84.5 cm, height 58.5 cm

Description

oil on cardboard, signed and dated bottom right, with black, "AC, (1)945"

Dating

1945

PROVENANCE

Mircea Iliescu historical collection (1900-1982).

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