When We Were Lovers
Artist
Edward Giobbi
(American)
Date1987
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions60 × 72 in. (152.4 × 182.9 cm)
ClassificationsPainting
Object numberUAC2716
DescriptionMade in 1987, “When We Were Lovers” is a later work in Giobbi’s painting career. Painted with oil on canvas, Giobbi uses visible brush strokes and a dry look that, from afar, almost gives this piece a crayon-esque aesthetic, while remaining clearly representational as opposed to the abstract expressionism that he was known for. However, upon closer inspection, there is a lot more detail in this huge piece up close. The scene shows two figures in the bottom right corner that seem to be embracing under a dark tree, while a path leads to a house in the background. A dark circle, perhaps a pond, juts out into the center space of the painting, disrupting the balance of the dark green foliage. A distant vineyard separates the green field from the sky above, playing on this back-and-forth between ominous dark shapes and familiar pastoral themes. The dark patches, combined with the title of the piece, gives When We Were Lovers a kind of sadness, implying that even in this otherwise idyllic scene, something was always looming over the pair of figures.
The story of the piece seems to recall a time when the couple in the corner were together, perhaps in one of their memories. The landscape and shapes, as a memory, show the things that were good and bad about their time as lovers, with scale showing something of the relative importance of the things remembered. While the figures embrace, they’re very small, compared to the ominous and looming trees, between which sits the pastoral elements. Perhaps the middle of their time was good, though the beginning and end were fraught with looming shapes.
Born in 1926, Edward Giobbi is best known for his work in abstract expressionism in the New York art scene during the 1970’s and 1980’s, as well as for writing "Pleasures of the Good Earth" (1991). His work draws on influences in both classical and post-modern Italian art, having studied in Florence at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze in the 1940s. He now resides in Katonah, New York.
Written by Alex Heath
