KIss (Bacio) 1915

Editor: This is Alberto Martini's "Kiss (Bacio)," created in 1915 – a monochromatic print depicting the faces of two figures locked in a kiss. The extreme contrast and almost blurring effect create a really intense and almost uneasy atmosphere for me. What do you see when you look at this work? Curator: Uneasy is a great word! It *should* feel that way. Look at how Martini uses light; it almost seems to be devouring the figures instead of illuminating them. We're in the middle of the First World War here, and Martini, even before joining as a volunteer officer, expressed disillusionment with Italian society. The sweet, idealized notion of a "kiss" is almost grotesque in this context, wouldn't you say? Editor: Definitely, it feels less like a romantic embrace and more… suffocating? Like they are about to be engulfed. Curator: Exactly! The tender, the beautiful... poisoned. It makes me wonder, doesn’t it, if love itself is just another casualty of the war? The almost ghostly rendering… is it life or death we are witnessing? Martini is not interested in conventional depictions; he offers us an invitation to ponder about love, the state, and devastation. What is left, that's his question! Editor: Wow, I hadn’t thought about the connection to the war so directly. It completely reframes how I see the print. Before, it was just an interesting study in light and shadow, but now it’s laden with… loss. Curator: That is the power of context, isn't it? Now, every time you see a kiss depicted, you'll maybe question its sweetness, looking for a bit of Martini's shadow. It is an honor to have planted a small seed, it is also an honor for an artist to be thought of still after all these years!