Artwork Description

Title:L’arrivo

Artist Matthias Brandes

Date 2015

Medium: Oil on canvas

Dimensions 31.5 x 47.2 in (80 x 120 cm)

1. Artwork Identification
Rendered in oil on canvas with the artist’s signature blend of oil and egg tempera, L’arrivo (2015) by Matthias Brandes presents a surreal tableau of monumental forms balanced with poetic stillness. A rust-hued ocean liner dominates the foreground, juxtaposed with a solitary Mediterranean tree, a small chapel-like structure, and an immaculate draped cloth—each situated on a tabletop-like pedestal against a calm expanse of sky and sea. Brandes constructs a world of metaphysical tension, where scale becomes symbolic and familiar elements acquire a dreamlike ambiguity.

2. Artistic Style and Influences
Brandes’ distinctive visual language is shaped by metaphysical painting traditions, drawing inspiration from Giorgio de Chirico and the early Italian surrealists. His technique, enriched by the fusion of oil and egg tempera, yields a dense, matte surface that enhances the monumentality of his forms. The composition dances between the boundaries of still life, landscape, and architecture, producing a meditative, nearly sacred atmosphere. The oblique light, precise textures, and impossible proportions situate Brandes’ work at the threshold between reality and imagination.

3. Historical Context
Emerging in the postwar European art scene, Matthias Brandes developed a personal iconography that bridges Northern precision with Italian lyricism. L’arrivo reflects the artist’s long-standing engagement with spatial metaphors and psychological landscapes. Painted in 2015 in his studio near Venice, the work reflects the transnational aesthetic concerns of a German-born painter immersed in the Mediterranean world. The sense of arrival implied in the Title:—poised yet unresolved—evokes broader narratives of migration, memory, and introspection in contemporary European identity.

4. Provenance
Provenance documentation can be provided upon contact.

5. Condition and Conservation
The artwork is in very good condition. The paint surface is stable, and there are no visible signs of cracking, abrasion, or restoration. The canvas retains its structural integrity and color saturation, indicative of careful preservation and high-quality materials.

6. Artistic Significance
L’arrivo exemplifies Matthias Brandes’ ability to collapse spatial and symbolic categories into a resonant visual idiom. His works are held in esteem for their philosophical depth, formal clarity, and cross-cultural sensibility. With a career spanning decades and exhibitions across Europe, Asia, and the United States, Brandes continues to shape a contemplative and quietly powerful niche in contemporary figurative surrealism. This piece offers collectors an opportunity to acquire a mature and evocative work by an artist of enduring international significance.