Renato Guttuso - Salome

The subject of this work refers to the Gospel episode in which Salome, daughter of Herodias, played a key role in the martyrdom of Saint John the Baptist. The prophet had denounced the concubinage between Herodias and Herod Antipas, and for this he was taken prisoner. Later, to please Salome, who had honored him with a dance during a banquet, the monarch had his head cut off. A fascinating and mysterious female figure, Salome has been a subject of inspiration for numerous painters, especially during the Symbolist era. In this regard, we recall the celebrated version created by the French artist Gustave Moreau.

This work is extremely interesting because it shows us a rather unseen side of Renato Guttuso, where the Sicilian master, in contrast to his usual realist poetics, develops an experimental, abstract, and expressionist approach. Indeed, in this painting, the human figure and the entire space surrounding it are subjected to a process of brutal synthesis that seems to seek to extract their deepest essence. The figures are constructed with a thick, tormented black line, which, with a convoluted, nervous movement, perfectly depicts the spasmodic tension of the dance. Salome's figure is arched in an unnatural twist that recalls Matisse's figures, confirming the work's strong expressionist vocation. However, the composition presents a strongly angular and sharp structure that harks back to the harshness of German Expressionism. The artist's strokes are vigorous, charged with energy in the execution of a dramatic scene in its essentiality. All this highlights the greatness of an artist like Renato Guttuso, capable of perfectly fitting into a stylistic register that was unusual for him.

Renato Guttuso, born in Bagheria in 1911 and died in Rome in 1987, was a painter deeply involved in politics and social issues. His artistic commitment stemmed from his socialist ideals and his outrage over social injustice and abuses of power. He participated in the Fronte Nuovo delle Arti group, developing a Realist-Expressionist style of painting and developing his "social art." Guttuso's most important works, expressing his neorealist art, were masterpieces such as Ficilazione in Campagna (Fucilation in the Countryside) and Fuga dall'Etna (Escape from Etna). He was also elected senator twice, in 1976 and 1979, for the Italian Communist Party.

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