Composition I 1989

Carlo Maria Mariani painted this piece, “Composition I”, and it's a trip, right? Like, is it classical, is it surreal? Look at the figure, smooth like porcelain, but the colors are a bit off, a little sickly even. That green violin is just screaming, isn't it? The way he renders the skin, it's almost too perfect, too airbrushed. But then you see these odd shadows, these subtle color shifts that hint at something deeper. It's like he's trying to create a dream, but one where the edges are a little frayed. The rabbit just chilling there adds to the whole bizarre scene. I can't help but think of Balthus when I see this. That same kind of unsettling beauty, that feeling that something's not quite right. It's a beautiful mess. It reminds you that art is always in conversation with itself.