Monsù Desiderio and their schizophrenia

Abstract

An imaginary, ghostly city, a dream which repeated every night. A representative impulse of vital energy dictated by the place, trapped in the canvas but ready to explode. Bizarre buildings, churches and towers, sometimes without doors and windows, sometimes transparent and shaded. Volcanic eruptions animate and humanize these arcane stone constructions. The dark and reddish colours refer to another visionary who lived eighty years before: Hieronymus Bosch. It is the art of MonsùDesiderio, who lived in Naples at the beginning of the seventeenth century. For over three centuries, it was only known that he had painted several small by an unusual conception. Apocalyptic and lunar landscapes detached from the style of the era. At that time, the representations of historical or religious scenes with large mass movements dominated. Instead, Desiderio centred all his dramatic interest on the sets, which usually make the background to the main event. The human figures, disseminated here and there in these significant landscapes of haunted and looming buildings, appear tiny, indifferent and unaware of what is happening around them (Fantastic ruins with St. Augustine and the child, 1623, National Gallery, London).