Fire! Fire! (Al fuoco, al fuoco) 1964

Enrico Baj created 'Fire! Fire!' using paint and collage elements. The immediate visual experience is one of alarm and crude figuration, with a roughly rendered character set against a patterned backdrop. Baj integrates found objects like buttons and mechanical parts, challenging traditional painting. The figure’s green, patchwork-like body and raised arms evoke a sense of primal fear, a stark cry for help. This juxtaposition of industrial and organic forms critiques the post-war anxieties about technology and dehumanization. The artwork can be interpreted through semiotics. The mechanical eye and fragmented body act as signs, pointing to a society increasingly dominated by machines and threatened by its own creations. The patterned background, reminiscent of domestic interiors, ironically contrasts with the chaotic figure, highlighting a disturbance in the social order. The rawness of the materials and the gestural quality of the paint underscore the work’s emotional intensity. Ultimately, 'Fire! Fire!' functions as both an aesthetic statement and a critical commentary on modernity.