Nude On A Blue Cushion (1917)

Description

Amedeo Modigliani’s Nude on a Blue Cushion, painted in 1917, organizes a reclining figure through long curves and broad areas of color. The dark-haired head rests toward the left, while the body extends diagonally across the picture. A blue cushion and folds of white cloth provide cool and pale accents against the warmer surrounding tones, making the figure’s outline especially clear.

The pose has a physical weight, but Modigliani simplifies the anatomy into a flowing arrangement that remains deliberately shaped. Dark hair and the face form a quieter focus beyond the larger sweep of the body. The painting asks the eye to move between the whole silhouette and those concentrated details, rather than treating every surface equally. Its intimacy comes from this balance of bodily presence and pictorial design, with the cushion and cloth helping the figure occupy a distinctive, enclosed space.

Read our guide to giclée prints or browse the Amedeo Modigliani collection.