Mario Schifano - Untitled (water Lilies) - 1984

Mario Schifano
Untitled (Water Lilies), 1984

Enamel and acrylic on canvas.

This work belongs to the famous series “Water Lilies”, one of the most emblematic themes in Mario Schifano’s body of work. Through this botanical motif, the artist develops a free and gestural interpretation of nature, transforming the aquatic landscape into a dynamic and deeply personal pictorial space.

On a light background, evoking the surface of the water, Schifano constructs a succession of stylized plant forms. Dense, highly textural marks and brushstrokes intertwine in a spontaneous and energetic composition. Touches of black, white, red, and turquoise define the flowers and vegetation through incisive gestures, while a dark, undulating line crosses the upper part of the composition.

The series “Water Lilies” holds a particularly significant place in Schifano’s body of work and constitutes one of the most recognizable cycles in his oeuvre. This motif allows the artist to explore the relationship between image, nature, and painterly gesture through a free and expressive style of painting, characteristic of an important part of his work in the 1980s.

The work is authentic and archived at the General Archive of Mario Schifano’s Work under the title “ Untitled”, no. 06045240302, dated March 15, 2024.

Medium: enamel and acrylic on canvas
Year: 1984
Dimensions: 65 × 85 cm
25.5 × 33.4 in
Signature: signed on the reverse.