Leonor Fini (August 30, 1908 —January 18, 1996, Paris) was an Argentine surrealist painter.
She was born in Buenos Aires to an Italian mother and an Argentinian father. Her mother left her father before Leonor's first birthday. She took the child to her home in Trieste, Italy, where Fini was disguised as a boy whenever she left her house for the next five years in order to foil kidnap attempts by her father.
Leonor Fini was acquainted with Salvador Dali, Picasso and other surrealists, therefore, I'm not surprised with her fascination with the subconscious mind.
Oil on canvas painting 'Little Hermit Sphinx' depicts Fini's relation between reality and her unconscious state of mind. Fini adored cats, and used the image of the sphinx partly as a self-portrait. the sphinx appears as a child-like, domesticated creature, sitting in front of its derelict habitat. although this piece evokes innocents, the organ hanging in the doorway and the bird skull remains at its feet, however, hint at acts of violence.
the focal point of this piece, being the child crouched in the doorway and the organ hanging above. the negative space between them, however, has significance, as if suggesting that the child distances themselves from the conscious mind, in order to escape reality and the gloomy surroundings. the aspect that struck me about this painting, was, the illusion of restriction. when i first viewed the piece i felt almost claustrophobic, rather than the doorway connoting freedom, progression and escape, I feel as if Fini is trapped in a subconscious battle between violence and naivety.
There are plants growing around the door frame and on the floor directly beneath the child.
The child is crouched down in the bottom right hand corner, therefore appearing inferior to the audience. Painted with pale colours Fini captures weakness and vulnerability through the child. Fini wants the audience to realise that the subconscious mind can be a threat. The doorway situates the audience as onlookers, into a world she believes is hard to understand without her insight and experience in surrealism. the outside of this world (room) seems to be full of life, for example, the colours used are warmer and plants are present.
the dark and sinister interior of this habitation is almost a state of depression that suffocates life forms, which evokes fear and anxiety. the organ in the doorway reminds me of London during the plague years. doctors would warn passers by of the plagues presence by painting a red cross on the door of the infected. the hanging organ, from my perspective carries a warning of the troubles within the room and the subconscious mind.
She was born in Buenos Aires to an Italian mother and an Argentinian father. Her mother left her father before Leonor's first birthday. She took the child to her home in Trieste, Italy, where Fini was disguised as a boy whenever she left her house for the next five years in order to foil kidnap attempts by her father.
Leonor Fini was acquainted with Salvador Dali, Picasso and other surrealists, therefore, I'm not surprised with her fascination with the subconscious mind.
Oil on canvas painting 'Little Hermit Sphinx' depicts Fini's relation between reality and her unconscious state of mind. Fini adored cats, and used the image of the sphinx partly as a self-portrait. the sphinx appears as a child-like, domesticated creature, sitting in front of its derelict habitat. although this piece evokes innocents, the organ hanging in the doorway and the bird skull remains at its feet, however, hint at acts of violence.
the focal point of this piece, being the child crouched in the doorway and the organ hanging above. the negative space between them, however, has significance, as if suggesting that the child distances themselves from the conscious mind, in order to escape reality and the gloomy surroundings. the aspect that struck me about this painting, was, the illusion of restriction. when i first viewed the piece i felt almost claustrophobic, rather than the doorway connoting freedom, progression and escape, I feel as if Fini is trapped in a subconscious battle between violence and naivety.
There are plants growing around the door frame and on the floor directly beneath the child.
The child is crouched down in the bottom right hand corner, therefore appearing inferior to the audience. Painted with pale colours Fini captures weakness and vulnerability through the child. Fini wants the audience to realise that the subconscious mind can be a threat. The doorway situates the audience as onlookers, into a world she believes is hard to understand without her insight and experience in surrealism. the outside of this world (room) seems to be full of life, for example, the colours used are warmer and plants are present.
the dark and sinister interior of this habitation is almost a state of depression that suffocates life forms, which evokes fear and anxiety. the organ in the doorway reminds me of London during the plague years. doctors would warn passers by of the plagues presence by painting a red cross on the door of the infected. the hanging organ, from my perspective carries a warning of the troubles within the room and the subconscious mind.
