Mold (Muffa)

Contemporary Art

1952

Alberto Burri
Italian, 1915–1995

Alberto Burri began his career as an artist after returning to Italy in 1946 from Texas, where he had been held in a prisoner-of-war camp. Attracted to unconventional, humble materials—such as tar, sand, and enamel— and processes like collage, Burri made work that is related to the European Informel movement and the Art Brut of Jean Dubuffet and is seen as a precursor to Arte Povera. Using a restricted palette of red and black, Burri established a simplicity and directness in his abstract work. Mold, a mixed-media painting, is from a series in which he explored the use of pumice stone. Here the visceral impact of this gritty, highly porous substance exemplifies Burri’s pursuit of material reality without recourse to realism.

Status: Currently Off View
Department: Contemporary Art

Artist: Alberto Burri
Title: Mold (Muffa)
Place: Italy (Artist's nationality)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: 1946–1956
Medium: Oil, synthetic polymer, pumice, and metallic paint on canvas
Dimensions: Without frame: 72.1 × 80 cm (28 7/16 × 31 1/2 in.); 72.1 × 80.1 cm (28 3/8 × 31 1/2 in.)
Credit Line: Gift of Studs Terkel in memory of Ida Terkel
Reference Number: 2002.590

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