Giovan Battista De Andreis - The Witches and the Inquisitor

The human figure has always been at the center of artistic research. Since the classical age, the naturalistic rendering of human anatomy has been a primary goal of painters and sculptors throughout history. The representation of the female figure is an expression of this aspiration, pervasive across all eras and stylistic trends. Indeed, in addition to the naturalistic interpretations of the Renaissance and various classicisms, which aimed for a truthful and detailed representation of the human body, the female figure has also been a central figure in the new aesthetic concepts brought about by the historical avant-garde, such as Cubism, Expressionism, and Surrealism. The female figure recurs in many of Giovan Battista De Andreis's subjects, inspired by history as well as esoteric and symbolic visions.

This work is part of a series of drawings inspired by the female figure, which beautifully reflect the artistic vision of Giovan Battista De Andreis. The world presents itself as a reality to be playfully transfigured in the drawing. De Andreis's entire style hinges on a decisive and confident line in delineating forms and volumes. But he always does so in a slightly lopsided, slightly dreamy manner, transforming reality into a fantasy. All this, combined with the balance of a spatial box constructed on an impeccable, excessively rational perspective, further accentuates the transition from reality to fantasy. The human body, too, is always reduced to a pure graphic line, which, however, through its complex movement, gives the figure volumetric exaltation and great physiognomic characterization, despite the lack of formal means. All this helps Giovan Battista De Andreis bring to life his world of subjects and iconographic themes that challenge the imagination.

Giovan Battista De Andreis was born in Badalucco in 1938. In 1958, after graduating from high school, he moved to Milan, where, thanks to Scanavino, he met the leading artists of the Milanese avant-garde. From the 1960s, De Andreis developed his own artistic language, inspired by surrealism and metaphysical painting. His first exhibition in Milan, in 1966, increased his fame, along with a succession of awards, such as the "La Notte 1967" and the "Panizza 1967" prizes, with juries presided over by Bruno Cassinari. Exhibitions followed in Milan, Turin, Brussels, and Amsterdam. His participation in exhibitions in Krakow, Buenos Aires, Katowice, and Milan earned him the "Recommended Artist 1978" award from the Bolaffi della Grafica. From 1984 to 1996, he held solo exhibitions in Rome, Milan, Palermo, Catania, Monte Segale, Nardò, Imperia, and Diano Castello. Added to those of the Maison de la Culture Woluwé-Saint-Pierre in Brussels, the Galleria Il Magnifico in Chianciano (in partnership with Ibrahim Kodra), and the Museo del Sannio in Benevento.

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