Created By
Francesco Lietti
wood collage and acrylic on wood board
Curator
Luke Chapman
In this triptych, we witness Lietti at his most sophisticated, orchestrating an urban symphony across three distinct movements. What particularly arrests me is how he's manipulated time and light through his command of color - from the nocturnal whispers of the first panel, through the golden crescendo of midday in the central piece, to the bold architectural aria of the final panel. The technical mastery displayed in the resin work creates an almost aqueous quality, as if we're viewing these cityscapes through layers of memory and atmosphere. It's this ability to capture both the physical and emotional architecture of urban spaces that continues to distinguish Lietti's work in the contemporary art landscape. The pieces resonate particularly well with collectors who understand how cities exist not just as physical spaces, but as temporal and emotional territories that we inhabit on multiple levels simultaneously.
In this triptych series, Lietti presents a striking evolution of his urban exploration, each panel offering a distinct atmospheric interpretation of the cityscape while maintaining a cohesive visual language. The works, executed in his characteristic mixed media and resin technique, showcase three different moods of the metropolitan environment. The left panel employs a more somber palette, dominated by deep blacks and strategic crimson interventions, with touches of gold at the base, creating a sense of night-time urbanism. The textural striations and layered geometries suggest the complexity of urban infrastructure after dark. The central piece pivots dramatically to a sun-drenched composition, where golden yellows dominate the upper portion while maintaining the architectural rhythm through diagonal and horizontal striping. Here, Lietti captures what feels like a mid-day urban energy, the buildings seeming to reflect and refract light across their surfaces. The right panel presents perhaps the most minimalist interpretation of the three, focusing on a bold interplay of reds, oranges, and navy blues. The forms are more clearly defined, with less textural variation but stronger geometric presence, suggesting the pure architectural forms of the city stripped to their essential shapes. All three pieces maintain Lietti's signature attention to surface texture and layering, with the resin finish providing that characteristic depth and luminosity that has become so sought after in his work. Together, they read like a temporal journey through the city's shifting moods - from nocturnal mystery to daylight brilliance to abstract architectural purity.
Created By
Francesco Lietti
60 x 90 cm | 24 x 35 in
Unframed, stretched
2020
