Artwork Description

Title: Dormono Sulla Collina 2
Artist: Giuseppe Modica (Italian, b. 1953)
Date: 2013
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 60 x 40 cm (23.6 x 15.7 in)

Artwork Identification
Dormono Sulla Collina 2 is a contemplative oil painting by contemporary Italian artist Giuseppe Modica, evoking poetic stillness and quiet introspection. The composition is rich with symbolic motifs: scattered shoes, an abandoned tripod, and books suspended in space, all depicted in luminous blue tones. The Title:, recalling the famed poem collection by Cesare Pavese, hints at memory, loss, and the passage of time.

Artistic Style and Influences
Modica’s work is marked by his refined use of light and his metaphysical approach to composition. Here, as in much of his oeuvre, objects are depicted with clarity yet displaced in time, as if seen through a veil of reverie. The grid-like texture and fractured geometry recall the influence of metaphysical painting and Italian rationalism, yet Modica’s language remains deeply personal and lyrical.

Historical Context
Painted in 2013, the work continues Modica’s exploration of metaphysical space and existential reflection. The series to which this piece belongs refers to Pavese’s La casa in collina and Antologia della Spoon River, drawing from the intersection of poetry and visual narrative. Dormono Sulla Collina 2 becomes a visual elegy for the anonymous lives behind the everyday objects we leave behind.

Provenance
Provenance documentation can be provided upon contact.

Condition and Conservation
The artwork is in very good condition. The canvas is structurally sound, the paint layer stable, and the frame in excellent presentation state.

Artistic Significance
Giuseppe Modica is widely regarded for his meditative, intellectually nuanced paintings. Dormono Sulla Collina 2 stands out for its poetic construction, blending material detail with metaphysical suggestion. It is a key example of Modica’s mature vision, merging art, literature, and philosophy into a single contemplative gesture.