Capital masterpieces

(HR)

… Gatanju se Ivan Generalić vraća u slici Gatanje iz 1975., gdje je gledatelj osobno suočen s gatarom – sada je on umjesto žene za stolom i više nije promatrač žanr-prikaza, nego sam postaje dio radnje. No, najintrigantniji detalj je lice gatare. Uspoređujući fizionomiju Generalićevog lica s fotografijama iz tog razdoblja i naslikane Ciganke, moguće je postaviti tezu da je Generalić sam sebe naslikao kao Ciganku razdrljenih ženskih grudi… 

… Ovo je najtajanstvenija od svih Generalićevih slika i vjerojatno jedna od najintimnijih. Zašto Ciganka pokazuje na svoju naušnicu u obliku kotača? To je simbol romskog naroda—hinduistička čakra, kotač života. No koristi li ga Generalić kao simbol kršćanskog kotača života? Govori li stol s kartama da se upravo gata naša sudbina, sudbina promatrača? Ili je ovo intimno zrcalo koje je Generalić postavio samome sebi? ….

… Koja je simbolika karata? Jesu li to dva asa – as života i smrti? Na jednoj karti roda nosi dijete, simbol novog kruga života, dok je na drugoj svećenik koji daje posljednju pomast. A zašto je Ciganka nasmiješena? Je li taj tajanstveni osmijeh preuzet s nekog drugog portreta? Je li ovo Generalićeva ciganska Mona Lisa? …

– Antonio Grgić, “Ivan Generalić: Djelo, život, vrijeme.” Hlebine, studeni 2014. Zbornik radova znanstveno-stručnog simpozija u povodu 100. obljetnice rođenja. Izvadak.

(EN)

… Generalić returns to the theme of fortune-telling in the 1975 painting “Divination” where the viewer is personally confronted by the fortune teller—this time, the viewer has taken the place of the woman at the table and is no longer a passive observer of a genre scene, but instead becomes part of the narrative. However, the most intriguing detail is the face of the fortune teller. Comparing Generalić’s facial features with photographs from that period and with those of the painted Roma woman, one can put forth the theory that Generalić painted himself as the Roma woman, bare-chested…

… This is the most enigmatic of all Generalić’s paintings and likely one of his most intimate. Why is the Roma woman pointing to her earring shaped like a wheel? It is a symbol of the Roma people—the Hindu chakra, the wheel of life. But is Generalić using it as a symbol of the Christian wheel of life? Does the table with the cards suggest that our fate—the viewer’s fate—is being foretold? Or is this an intimate mirror that Generalić set up for himself? …

… What is the symbolism of the cards? Are they two aces—ace of life and ace of death? On one card, a stork carries a child, symbolizing a new cycle of life, while on the other, a priest delivers the last rites. And why is the Roma woman smiling? Is that mysterious smile borrowed from another portrait? Is this Generalić’s Roma Mona Lisa? …

– Antonio Grgić, “Ivan Generalić: Work, Life, Time.” Hlebine, November 2014. Proceedings of the Scientific and Expert Symposium marking the 100th anniversary of his birth. Excerpt.

(HR)

Slika prikazuje poznatu talijansku glumicu Sofiju Loren u bogato ukrašenoj plavoj haljini i šeširu, smještenu u snježni podravski pejzaž. U njenom naručju nalazi se tigrasti mačak, za kojeg je Generalić šaljivo izjavio da simbolizira njezinog supruga, aludirajući na ideju da žene drže muškarce “pod kontrolom.”
Riječ je o jednom od najpoznatijih djela iz autorovog opusa portreta poznatih osoba i zvijezda.

• … Umjetnik, međutim, čini korak dalje i u krajolike Podravine dovodi osobe poznate na svjetskoj razini. Prvi pokušaji u tom smjeru ostvareni su prikazom lika Sophije Loren, smještene ispred zimskog pejzaža, te Beatlesa koje također postavlja u hlebinski zimski ambijent… Dok Sophia Loren pod rukom drži golemog, neobičnog mačka, oko nogu Beatlesa motaju se svinje i ponovno jedan začudan mačak, dok u rukama drže tipična glazbala podravskih “muzikaša”. Ta naturalizacija slavne glumice i glazbenika u podravskom ambijentu na neki način svjedoči o duhovnoj transformaciji unutar provincijske svijesti, ali i o svojevrsnom deformitetu koji neizbježno prati proces pomodarskog usvajanja popularne kulture… – Jugoart, 1988. Juraj Baldani.
  
  
• … Zaokret je, bez sumnje, bio uvjetovan pritiscima gradske sredine; da je Generalić mlađi ostao u svojim Hlebinama, do njega nikada ne bi ni došlo. Što je nakon tog zaokreta ostalo u slikaru od onoga hlebinskog i naivnog? Gotovo sve. Grad je duboko uzdrmao motive Josipa Generalića, ali nije uništio njegovu naivnu viziju svijeta. Uostalom, kada se nakon dva čina ponovno digao ‘zastor’, pred nama je stajala stara hlebinska ‘inscenacija’ – samo što su dotadašnje seoske aktere zamijenili novi: glumci, pjevači, komedijaši, glazbenici, atlete — svi oni koji su krenuli prema Hlebinama! Napirlitana Sophia nosi kroz snježni podravski pejzaž svog mačka Karla… – Jugoart, 1988. Josip Depolo.
  
  
• … Nerijetko, duhovito i karikaturalno, umjetnik se obraća poznatim ličnostima – pjevačima, glazbenicima, književnicima, glumcima – i tako nastaje ciklus portreta slavnih osoba. Sophia Loren, Yul Brynner, Beatlesi, preseljeni su u atmosferu hlebinskog pejzaža. Unatoč prisutnosti laganog humora i karikaturalnog tona, portreti djeluju snažno, prepoznatljivo i uvjerljivo… – Jugoart, 1988. Koviljka Smiljković.

(EN)

The painting depicts the famous Italian actress Sophia Loren dressed in an ornately decorated blue gown and hat, set against a snowy Podravina landscape. In her arms rests a tabby cat, which Generalić humorously claimed symbolizes her husband – suggesting, with a touch of irony, that women keep men “under control.”
It is one of the most well-known works from the author’s series of portraits of famous people and celebrities.

• … The artist, however, takes a step further and brings world-famous figures into the landscapes of Podravina. The first attempts in this direction were realized by depicting the figure of Sophia Loren, placed in front of a winter landscape, as well as the Beatles, who are also set in a winter scene of Hlebine… While Sophia Loren holds a huge, unusual cat in her arms, pigs crawl around the Beatles’ feet along with another curious cat, and in their hands, they hold typical instruments of Podravina ‘musicians.’ This naturalization of the famous actress and musicians into the Podravina setting somehow testifies to a spiritual transformation within the provincial consciousness, but also to a kind of deformity that inevitably accompanies the process of fashionable adoption of popular culture… – Jugoart, 1988. Juraj Baldani.
  
  
• …The turning point, without a doubt, was conditioned by pressures from the urban environment; had Generalić Jr. stayed in his Hlebine, it would never have come about. What remained of the Hlebine and naive painter in him after that turning point? Almost everything. The city deeply shook Josip Generalić’s motifs but did not destroy his naive vision of the world. After all, when the ‘curtain’ rose again after two acts, before us stood the old Hlebine ‘staging’—only the previous rural actors were replaced by new ones: actors, singers, comedians, musicians, athletes—all those who set off towards Hlebine! The adorned Sophia carries her cat Karlo through the snowy Podravina landscape… – Jugoart, 1988. Josip Depolo.
  
  
• …Often, humorously and caricature-like, the artist addresses famous personalities—singers, musicians, writers, actors—and thus creates a cycle of portraits of famous people. Sophia Loren, Yul Brynner, the Beatles, are relocated into the atmosphere of the Hlebine landscape. Despite the presence of light humor and caricature tone, the portraits appear strong, recognizable, and convincing… – Jugoart, 1988. Koviljka Smiljković.

(HR)

… Sposobnost slikara da određene pojave i ličnosti asimilira u nove prostore i da ih na neki način “naturalizira”, dobit će i u ovom slučaju novu potvrdu. Kompozicija koja ima naslov Jerihonski anđeo, a predstavlja astronauta što se sa svemirske letjelice spušta u tipičan zimski podravski pejsaž, najavljuje novi odnos prema tom motivu. Još eklatantniji primjer bit će staklo Svemirci u Podravini, gdje je već takoreći došlo do “susreta treće vrste”. Autor međutim u tom uspostavljanju veze između Svemira i Hlebina ide još i dalje, pa na jednom od ostvarenja predstavlja kako “Imbro z Hlebin kolonizira Mjesec”… – Jugoart, 1988. Juraj Baldani.

(EN)

… The painter’s ability to assimilate certain phenomena and personalities into new spaces and, in a way, ‘naturalize’ them, will once again be confirmed in this case. The composition titled The Angel of Jericho, depicting an astronaut descending from a spacecraft into a typical winter landscape of Podravina, signals a new approach to this motif. An even more striking example is the glass piece Aliens in Podravina, where there has practically been a ‘close encounter of the third kind’. The artist, however, goes even further in establishing a connection between the Universe and Hlebine, and in one of the works depicts how ‘Imbro from Hlebine colonizes the Moon’… – Jugoart, 1988. Juraj Baldani.

(HR)

… Započeti ciklus portreta osoba iz showbusinessa Josip Generalić će uspješno nastaviti i u 1975. godini. Izdvajaju se tri ostvarenja: Jezik Johna L., Ringo S. z trubom i Janis Joplin s mikrofonom. Kao i kod predhodnih slučajeva, kulisa, odnosno pozadina, opet je podravski pejsaž, ali tek u blagim naznakama. Autor se koncentrirao na psihološki izraz modela nastojeći da izvjesnim karikaturalnim akcentima potencira individualnosti… – Jugoart, 1988. Juraj Baldani.

(EN)

…Josip Generalić would successfully continue the portrait cycle of show business personalities into the year 1975. Three works stand out: The Tongue of John L., Ringo S. with a Trumpet, and Janis Joplin with a Microphone. As in previous cases, the backdrop is once again the Podravina landscape, though only hinted at faintly. The artist focused on the psychological expression of the models, aiming to emphasize their individual traits through certain caricature-like accents… – Jugoart, 1988. Juraj Baldani.