Chirico, Giorgio de (jōr`jō dā kē`rēkō), 1888–1978, Italian painter, b. Vólos, Greece. Chirico developed his enigmatic vision in Munich and Italy and from 1911 to 1915 he worked and exhibited in Paris. His powerful, disturbing paintings employ steep perspective, mannequin figures, empty space, and forms used out of context to create an atmosphere of mystery and loneliness. His work exercised a considerable influence on early surrealist painters but was never successfully imitated. In Ferrara, Chirico developed what he termed metaphysical painting, in which he consciously exploited the symbolism of his art. Chirico is represented in leading galleries throughout the world.

Bibliography

See his memoirs (tr. 1972); studies by J. T. Soby (1955, repr. 1967) and I. Far (tr. 1971).

Chirico, Giorgio de

The Soothsayer's Recompense, oil on canvas by Giorgio de Chirico, …

(credit: Courtesy of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Louise and Walter Arensberg Collection)

(born July 10, 1888, Vólos, Greece—died Nov. 19, 1978, Rome, Italy) Italian painter. Born to Italian parents in Greece, he studied art in Munich and began painting images juxtaposing the fantastic with the commonplace. In 1911 he moved to Paris, where he produced ominous scenes of deserted piazzas with Classical statues, isolated figures, and oppressive architecture. The element of mystery in his work exerted a great influence on Surrealism in the 1920s. He is known as the founder, with Carlo Carrà and Giorgio Morandi, of Metaphysical painting.