Aligi Sassu - In the field

The painting can be defined as a genre scene, that is, the depiction of an episode of everyday life that, apparently, lacks any significant element. These types of domestic subjects were long considered minor and only began to spread in Western art starting in the 17th century. Only with the development of 19th-century realism did everyday subjects become considered as important as historical or religious ones. In this work, the artist Aligi Sassu abandons his typically symbolist and mythological iconography, where the theme of the horse is prominent, to devote himself to a realistic scene with a delightfully popular feel.

The candid realism that artist Aligi Sassu advocates in his choice of subject is also reflected in his execution, which, especially with the use of gouache, takes on a distinct freshness and spontaneity. This owes much to the artist's skill, who, despite the diluted color, manages to construct the representation with rapid, concise brushstrokes, maintaining narrative clarity and concreteness of form. Even in this popular subject, however, the great dynamism of Aligi Sassu's pictorial style remains undiminished; the entire composition appears lively and extremely vibrant. The color scheme also takes on decidedly expressionist overtones, with the stark contrast offered by the prevalent purple of the figures and the bright yellow of the vegetation.

Aligi Sassu, born in Milan in 1912 and died in 2000, was a painter and sculptor. His painting focused primarily on the representation of movement and physical strength, which is why the subject of a man on horseback was always congenial to him. In the late 1970s, he and Bruno Munari drafted the pictorial manifesto "Dynamism and Muscular Reform," which called for a return to anti-naturalistic forms in a dynamic sense. Much of his painting, moreover, is inspired by Delacroix and his struggles.

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