Amedeo Modigliani

Amedeo Modigliani , 1884-1920, Italian painter, b. Livorno. In Paris after 1906, Modigliani first worked as a sculptor and was influenced by cubism and African art. Soon, however, he developed a unique style in painting, characterized by an elongation of form, a purity of line, a sense of sculptural mass, and a languorous atmosphere reminiscent of Florentine mannerism . Although known to other artists and many Parisian intellectuals, he remained largely unknown to the public during his short life, which was one of poverty, dissipation, and disease. Shortly after his death from tuberculosis, his magnificent portraits and figure studies became highly prized by collectors. Modigliani is particularly well represented in the Art Institute of Chicago and the Museum of Modern Art, New York City.

Bibliography: See biography by W. Fifield (1978); studies by J. Modigliani (1958), J. T. Soby (1963), A. Werner (1967), C. Mann (1985), A. S. Pfannsteil and B. Schuster (1986), A. Kruszynski (1996), D. Autkrystof (2000), K. Wayne (2002), M. Restilinni (2003), and M. Klein et al. (2004).

Modigliani, Amedeo (1884–1920) Italian painter, sculptor, and draughtsman. Many of his sculptures portray elongated heads, inspired by mannerism and African art. During World War I Modgliani returned to painting, focusing on erotic female nudes and portraits, such as Girl with Pigtails (1901).

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