Boy with Red Scarf

(1903-1971)
Born in Salerno and trained at the Naples Academy of Fine Arts, Clemente Tafuri looked to Vincenzo Migliaro as one of his primary formal references. In this wood panel from 1936-37—as in the contemporary portrait of a Young Girl (entry 16)—the bright tones of his early work give way to a thick, chiaroscuro style, also influenced by the teachings of Michele Cammarano. The work documents a period of rigor and diminished formal indulgence, preceding the nervous brushwork of his later production. The commercial success Tafuri enjoyed in the post-war years has often overshadowed the quality of this mature phase, characterized by a dense plastic and luministic research.