Two Women 1958

Franco Gentilini made this print, "Two Women", with its earthy palette, by seemingly piecing together shapes and forms. The textured surfaces are amazing. Look at the way he’s built up the layers of colour to create a kind of mottled effect. It gives a real sense of depth and almost makes it feel like a fresco. The way the arrow disrupts the picture plane is exciting. It’s like a joke, as though Gentilini is winking at us, reminding us that this is all artifice, a clever arrangement of shapes and textures. It’s also pretty funny that the arrow seems to lead to the women's spike heels! Gentilini reminds me a little of Léger, actually. Both are so good at simplifying form and yet so expressive. And, like Léger, Gentilini seems to want to explore the relationship between abstraction and figuration, hinting at stories without ever fully revealing them. It’s this ambiguity that makes his work so compelling.