Still Life in Green with Grapes, Plums, Pears, and Mushroom, Enzo Faraoni

Still Life in Green with Grapes, Plums, Pears, and Mushroom, Enzo Faraoni (Santo Stefano Magra, 1920 - Florence, 2017)

Signed: Bottom right “E. Faraoni”

Technique: Oil on cardboard

Dimensions: Approximately 27 x 40 cm (with frame)

Description: A small oil painting on cardboard depicting a still life dominated by shades of green. Grapes, plums, pears, and a green mushroom – an impossible element in reality – come together in a composition that flirts with the surreal. The green, applied with energetic and expressive brushstrokes, transforms an everyday scene into an imaginative and poetic vision, evoking a unique emotional response in the viewer.

At a certain point in his career, Faraoni focused on still lifes where green played a central role. Not meant to convey symbolic meaning, the green served as an expressive tool, creating an atmosphere suspended between reality and imagination. The green mushroom, extraordinary and unexpected, amplifies this perception, turning the ordinary into a singular and evocative vision.

Condition: Good.

Biographical Notes on Enzo Faraoni

Enzo Faraoni (1920-2017), born in Santo Stefano Magra, trained at the Florence Institute of Art under the guidance of Francesco Chiapparelli and Pietro Parigi. His painting combines the Tuscan figurative tradition with chromatic and emotional experimentation, allowing him to reinterpret reality with a distinctive personal style.

His works, like this still life, explore the ability of color to generate unique emotions. Here, green becomes the absolute protagonist, not only for its visual predominance but also for the imaginative and poetic atmosphere it creates. Florence was the center of his artistic activity, where he developed a unique style and participated in major national and international exhibitions.

Main Exhibitions

• First solo exhibition at Galleria “Il Fiore,” Florence, 1942

• Tuscan Painting Exhibition, San Miniato, 1939

• IV Quadriennale d’Arte, Rome, 1947 (and subsequent participations: 1951, 1955, 1959, 1965)

• Venice Biennale (1948, 1950, 1954, 1956)

• “60 Masters of the Next Thirty Years,” Prato, 1950

• Solo exhibition at Centro Culturale dell’Indiscreto, Rome, 1980

• International Graphic Biennale, Seoul, 1982

• Galleria Pirra, Turin, 1982

Provenance: Private collection.