Battle of the gladiators in the arena by Giorgio de Chirico

Twelve years later, working on the “Battle of the gladiators in the arena,” de Chirico is even more determined to realism. Natural colors make it believable to reproduce Roman historical realities. Each gesture of the gladiators is captured by an exclusive study of the details, while the arena and the blood-thirsty crowd are depicted very conditionally.

By color and composition, the picture resembles an antique mural. Probably, such a hoax was entirely part of the plans of de Chirico, since the heroic, at first glance, plot is filled with irony and even a certain share of the grotesque. All the characters froze with the weapon brought, as if unable to move. The dynamics again turns into static.

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