Mario Restaino - Clown

The clown was a popular subject among genre painters of the 1970s and 1980s. Many artists dedicated much of their careers to depicting this theme, Romano Mussolini being a prime example. Typically, the interpretation of this subject is similar for all artists who attempt it: the clown appears with his makeup designed to evoke laughter and hilarity, but instead displays a melancholic expression. This contrast is intended to spark an empathetic dialogue with the viewer. The clown has also been favored by many painters for another formal reason. Indeed, his flamboyant makeup and colorful clothing offer painters a pretext for creating original color harmonies.

As we can see in this work, Mario Restaino's language always moves within the realm of a frank realism, which, however, is cloaked by the painter in a delicate impressionistic lyricism. Indeed, the subject's representation is handled with absolute sincerity, free from any form of idealization. The relationship with the viewer is direct, charged with strong expressive and physiognomic characterization. From a pictorial perspective, the application of color is extremely lively, dynamic, with impressionistic overtones. Thus, the depiction of the clown is charged with vibrations that are not only luminous but also existential. The subject, therefore, in its profound realism, is transfigured into a more poetic dimension determined by its very being.

Mario Restaino is an important 20th-century Italian painter. His favorite subjects are clowns and horses. In his paintings, he developed a personal poetics in which the realistic interpretation of his subjects is transfigured by a delicate, impressionistic brushstroke.

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