Vittorio Novelli, Still Life with Flowers, 1958, Oil Painting on Cardboard, Framed

Mid-Century 1950s Italian Signed and Dated Still Life with Flowers
This wonderful painting dated 25 February 1958, is by the great Italian artist of the Roman School, Vittorio "Tom" Novelli.
The two flowers are arranged diagonally, creating a poetic sense of movement and naturalness.
Signed and dated lower right " Tom Novelli 25-2-1958 "
In this small masterpiece the two red roses on stems, are captured in full bloom.
The background is neutral and luminous, shifting towards ochre and straw-yellow tones to bring out the colour of the petals.
This artwork, never before on the market, comes from an important Italian private collection.
It is an oil on cardboard characterised by a textured and decisive brushstroke.
The work follows in the tradition of 20th-century figurative art.
The technique is swift, almost impressionistic: the artist does not seek meticulous botanical detail, but prefers to capture the light and vitality of the flower through vibrant touches of colour.
The use of green and brown shadows for the leaves contrasts sharply with the bright red of the corollas.
The red of the roses is modulated with darker tones (crimson and brown) to give volume and depth to the petals.
The light appears to come from the left, illuminating the upper edges of the flowers.
The signature “Tom Novelli” is clearly visible in the lower left corner, accompanied by the precise date (“25-2-58”), a recurring feature in this artist’s works that allows them to be contextualised within his period of production in Rome.
The painting exudes an elegant simplicity, typical of the indoor still lifes of the period, where the focus is on the chromatic effect rather than the complexity of the scene.
The work is set in an elegant cream-coloured passe-partout and protected by a classic-style gilded wooden frame.
The painted surface is in excellent condition.
This significant and rare painting belongs to the still-life genre of the mid-20th century, and this important work demonstrates a solid mastery of colour theory and the study of light typical of the figurative painting of that period.
He worked as a realist painter and was active on the Roman scene between the 1940s and 1970s.

He distinguished himself for his talent in drawing from life and oil painting, as well as having made watercolors and floral works.

In December 1954 he held a major solo exhibition at the Grand Hotel in Rome.

He is famous in the art world for running a studio/atelier in Rome where he led young talents.

A famous example is the artist Enrico Guarino, who began studying real drawing in Novelli's studio at the age of ten.

The following is the accompanying text for an exhibition held by Vittorio Tom Novelli in 1954 at one of Italy’s most prestigious art galleries " MOSTRA DEL PITTORE VITTORIO TOM NOVELLI
ROMA - GRAND HOTEL
VIA DELLE TERME
Dal giorno 11 al 16 dicembre 1954 - Ore 10-12,30 - 16-20"

EXHIBITION BY THE PAINTER VITTORIO TOM NOVELLI
ROME - GRAND HOTEL
VIA DELLE TERME
from December 11 to 16, 1954 - 10:00 AM - 12:30 PM - 4:00 PM - 8:00 PM


"As I set out to give a brief and cordial introduction to the solo exhibition of the painter VITTORIO TOM NOVELLI, I confess that I asked myself a question: how will this exhibition be received by critics and art lovers; that is, by those who, whether by profession or personal taste, are accustomed to visiting exhibitions of this kind?
A quick glance at the exhibition as a whole will suffice to explain the reason for this question.
How different, indeed, Novelli’s painting appears from the style that reigns supreme today in every exhibition hall!
And how different, above all, are his intentions!
But let us be clear from the outset: our Tom is not making any polemical point with his exhibition; if anything, all his paintings speak to us of a rebellion, of an intimate—and solely intimate—desire to swim against the tide.
And perhaps there is no need to speak of courage at all, for when an artist is driven to express himself through a particular form of expression by his own spiritual need, it would take courage to take the opposite path.
Vittorio Tom Novelli has therefore felt a powerful need to reconnect with tradition: this is why this exhibition of his will appear, to critics and art lovers alike, at the very least, unusual.
Few paintings — about forty in all — but marked by certain characteristics that immediately reveal the artist’s personality.
First of all, the size of the paintings, which tend to grow ever larger, as if the artist were drawn to the challenges of space; then, the subject matter of his paintings, in which the figure predominates: a difficult subject, as everyone knows.
A few nudes, a handful of still lifes and flowers: this is the language through which Vittorio Tom Novelli aspires to express himself.
But it is clearly a language that is plain and straightforward, with no problems to be resolved.
Above all, it is a sincere language.
How could it be otherwise, after all?
Anyone who addresses a gathering of listeners without seeking to profit from their words has the right to be considered sincere.
And Vittorio Tom Novelli does not expect to profit from his paintings.
He does not sell them.
He simply presents them to the public’s attention, like someone who merely wishes to find an outlet for the feelings pressing within him.
It is clear that from this lack of self-interest, Art can only derive a sense of dignity.
To the soul of an artist, the commercialisation of one’s own creation easily appears as the sin of simony.
with these introductory words of mine, I have not expressed, nor did I wish to express, judgements of any kind.
That is what the public is for.
But one final warning comes to me from the artist himself, who today faces judgement: his exhibition is not a goal achieved, but rather a starting point from which he, with humble and patient tenacity, has set out on a path without knowing or asking where it will lead him. He wishes only to walk, to move forward.
And in this profession of faith of his, another rendezvous between the painter and his audience appears, implicitly.
When? Where? Only the future will tell us."
ERMETE LIBERATI

Ermete Liberati (1902–1960) was an active journalist and critic, known in Italian cultural and theatrical life between the 1920s and 1930s.

He was a very active journalist in Italian theatrical life, writing articles on art criticism and various genres, as well as being the author of music and lyrics.

In 1932 he was about 30 years old, as evidenced by photographic documentation of the time that portrays him together with exponents of Roman culture such as Anna Magnani.

In 1926 he married Tatiana Fedorovna Saljapina, daughter of the famous bass Fedor Saljapin

Dimensions are frame included