4 seasons - Autumn by Giuseppe Arcimboldo

This joyful pictorial celebration of the harvests will fit harmoniously into the traditional allegorical and metaphorical cycles characteristic of the late European Renaissance of that era. Created by the great undisputed master of illusionism Arcimboldo Giuseppe, this masterful work is named “4 seasons - Autumn”. The painting testifies to the close links uniting seasonal rhythms, generous agricultural abundance and refined intellectual entertainments of the sovereign’s princely court.

A man in left profile is represented emerging from an old broken wooden barrel secured by woven wicker branches. The face is formed of ripe autumn fruits, with a voluminous pear for the chin and a colorful apple for the cheek. An open pomegranate reveals its red seeds at the level of the chin, while a prickly chestnut burr figures the beard. The ear is a well-drawn large flat mushroom. The opulent hair is an accumulation of beautiful bunches of ripe black and white grapes, topped by an immense whitish gourd. The side light subtly models the round shapes on a dark background.

The rough texture of the barrel staves contrasts wonderfully with the smooth skin of the autumn fruits painted in oil. The artist values his know-how through an incredible anatomical precision and a striking realism. This meticulous execution remains entirely admirable and exemplary.