Coup d'oeil

The artist reworks visions inspired by De Chirico’s Metaphysical art in a profoundly different manner, seen both in the quality of the draughtsmanship and in his choice of palette. Extremely pale, the colours in this work become subtle gradations of shadows cast on the walls of a room whose floor is comprised of alternate bluish and pale grey vertical stripes that stretch away from the viewer. In an image that borrows from De Chirico, a boat rests on the floor, but the structure of this light vessel, which is also rendered in shades of grey, remains extremely personal. Painted in wood tones, the boat’s oars are softly outlined, as is the bird perched on the oars themselves, and directly opposite, a female head resting on a cross-shaped support. Birds were a common feature of Clerici’s work and were usually inspired by Egyptian hieroglyphs. From this bird’s beak shoots a laser-like ray that cleaves the head in two. The shape of the head resonates with images of Egypt, another of Clerici’s favourite motifs owing to his love for mystery shrouded in silence.