86. Blue Landscape [1991.]

Edo Murtić (Velika Pisanica, 1921 – Zagreb, 2005) was a Croatian painter, graphic artist, and academic. He studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb under Professor Ljubo Babić. He perfected his skills in Belgrade under Petar Dobrović who left a significant mark on Murtić's future work. In his earliest works of illustrations and posters, a strong commitment to leftist political ideas is evident. During World War II, he joined the partisans and together with Zlatko Prica, organized the first partisan lithographic printing house, and they co-illustrated the poem Jama by Ivan Goran Kovačić. After the war, he abandoned engaged painting, created the Adriatic cycle, and approached post-impressionistic coloration. His shift towards abstract expressionism was influenced by his stay in the USA and Canada in the early 50s and interaction with the works of J. Pollock and W. De Kooning. He began simplifying motives to basic elements with extremely rhythmic and dynamic composition. The 60s and 70s saw the culmination of coloristic expression in large format paintings with wide black strokes and explosions of color. During the 80s he returned to rich coloring, painting Mediterranean landscapes, and started an expressionist cycle Eyes of Fear which problematizes the suffering of people in wars, which is evident in his work during the Homeland War. At the turn of the millennium, he returned to abstraction and vivid colors. During his life, he held about 150 solo exhibitions around the world. The oil on canvas Blue Landscape (1991) is recognizably Murtić's due to its rich color and abstraction and the intensity of movement. In this simple composition, a darker color palette predominates, painting a more ominous side of nature. This prevailing black is refreshed with accents of vibrant blue, pink, and yellow-green. The painting is signed and dated in the lower right corner.

Dimensions

width 92.5 cm, height 67 cm

Description

ulje na platnu, signed and dated bottom right, in black, "Murtic (19)91"

Dating

1991.

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