Alfredo Grimaldi (1950) - Riflessi di Sorrento

Reflections of Sorrento
Artwork on canvas 30x60 cm
Artist: Alfredo Grimaldi

Bright and gestural oil painting, this seaside view by Alfredo Grimaldi unfolds a coastal village stretched in terraces along an amber cliff, with colorful houses capturing the late afternoon light and reflecting it in a symphony of pink, lemon yellow, and cobalt blue. The brushwork is quick and vibrant, with dense impastos on the architecture and more fluid glazes in the sky and water, creating a visual rhythm that alternates solidity and transparency, guiding the eye toward the tree-covered hilltop crowning the settlement. In the foreground, two boats, one red and one blue, sway on pearlescent waters; their wakes, broken into short, diagonal strokes, transform the reflection of the facades into a shimmering mosaic that suggests a slow, breathing movement of the port. The figures on board, reduced to essential marks, introduce a human and narrative dimension: the return from fishing, the murmur of the pier, the calm before evening. Light dominates the composition: a warm source from the right envelops the volumes, while turquoise and lilac glows cross the sky, indicating high clouds and clear air after the summer day. The artist balances complementary contrasts—pink against green, yellow against violet—to make the scene vibrate, while the dark edge of the shore on the right acts as a counterpoint and frames the wide liquid expanse. The spatial construction proceeds through overlapping planes: the band of boats, the luminous strip of reflections, the breakwater animated by vertical marks like shrouds, then the wall of houses climbing toward the forest, up to the distant bluish mountain that seals the atmospheric depth. The high horizon and rectangular format emphasize the breadth of the panorama, while the tilt of the brushstrokes on the water adds dynamism and guides the eye across the entire width of the canvas.