The Mysterious Swan
1934
Oil on canvas
60.6 × 50.2 cm (23.9 × 19.8 in)
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Not currently on view
In the collection of Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia · as of July 2026
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FROM THE BARNES FOUNDATION’S CATALOG
In this enigmatic canvas, Italian painter Giorgio de Chirico wove together memories from his childhood spent in the seaside city of Volos, Greece. The multicolored swan, evocative of a plesiosaur from his favorite book, zigzags across a surface inspired by a freshly polished parquet floor. The stilted changing-cabins on the beach fascinated the young de Chirico as sites of transition between dress and nudity.
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