Modigliani's only solo exhibition was shut down by the police within hours of opening because the nudes in the window showed pubic hair. This was in 1917[8], at Berthe Weill's gallery on the Rue Taitbout in Paris. The gallery owner refused the commissioner's demand to remove the works. Officers dragged her to the station. He sold one drawing from the show, but the scandal made him notorious.
Key facts
Biography
He was born in 1884[8] in Livorno, a Tuscan port city with a large Sephardic Jewish community. His family had banking and mining interests; they were not poor. He contracted pleurisy at eleven, typhoid fever at sixteen, and tuberculosis around the same time. The TB would be chronic for the rest of his life, worsened by Parisian winters in unheated studios, absinthe, hashish, and opium. He was five feet three inches tall and described by everyone who met him as strikingly handsome.
In 1912[8] he exhibited eight carved stone heads at the Salon d'Automne. The elongated, simplified forms drew on African sculpture. These characteristics transferred to his painting and became the signature style: stretched necks, almond-shaped faces, almond eyes that often lack pupils, lines of arabesque suppleness. The faces are immediately recognisable. They resemble no other artist.
He met Jeanne Hebuterne in the spring of 1917[8]. She was nineteen, an art student, introduced by the sculptor Chana Orloff. Her face became one of the most painted in his work. She came from a conservative Catholic family who disowned her for the relationship. Their daughter was born in 1918.
He died on 24 January 1920[8], at the Hopital de la Charite in Paris, of tubercular meningitis. He was thirty-five. Jeanne Hebuterne, nine months pregnant with their second child, threw herself from her parents' fifth-floor apartment window the following morning.
Timeline
- 1884Born in Livorno, Italy, into a Sephardic Jewish family. His early childhood was marked by illness, including bouts of pleurisy and typhoid fever.
- 1902At 18, enrolled at the Istituto di Belle Arti in Florence before moving to Venice to continue his studies at the Accademia di Belle Arti.
- 1906Moved to Paris at 22, settling in Montmartre where he encountered Picasso, Brancusi and the avant-garde circle that would shape his artistic direction.
- 1909At 25, met sculptor Constantin Brancusi in Paris and turned to stone carving. By 1912 he exhibited eight carved heads at the Salon d'Automne.
- 1917At 33, painted his celebrated series of reclining nudes in Paris. His solo show at Galerie Berthe Weill was shut down by police for indecency on its opening day.
- 1918At 34, his daughter Jeanne was born in Nice to partner Jeanne Hebuterne. The family spent time in the south of France for his deteriorating health.
- 1920Died of tubercular meningitis in Paris at 35. Jeanne Hebuterne took her own life the following day, nine months pregnant with their second child.
Notable Works
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Where to See Amedeo Modigliani
24 museums worldwide.
Related Artists
Frequently Asked Questions
Amedeo modigliani modern art style?
In 1915[8], it was a turning point for Amedeo Modigliani. He was photographed with Picasso and André Salmon in front of La Café Rotonde.Did amedeo modigliani have children?
Amedeo Modigliani had one daughter with Jeanne Hebuterne, born in 1918[8]. Hebuterne was pregnant with their second child when Modigliani died; she committed suicide the following morning.What is amedeo modigliani famous for?
Amedeo Modigliani is primarily known for his paintings of reclining nudes. The figures often have long, thin necks, sloping shoulders, tilted heads with small mouths, long noses, and blank slits for eyes.What was amedeo modigliani known for?
Amedeo Modigliani is primarily known for his paintings of reclining nudes. The figures often have long, thin necks, sloping shoulders, tilted heads with small mouths, long noses, and blank slits for eyes.When did amedeo modigliani die?
Amedeo Modigliani died in 1920[8] at the age of 36.Where did amedeo modigliani live?
Amedeo Modigliani was born in Livorno, Italy, and later moved to Paris in 1906[8]. In Paris, he settled in Le Bateau-Lavoir, a commune for artists in Montmartre, and rented a studio in Rue Caulaincourt.Who was amedeo modigliani?
Amedeo Modigliani was born in Livorno, Italy, on 12 July 1884[8]. He began studying painting at age fourteen, and later attended the Istituto di Belle Arti in Venice.Who is amedeo modigliani?
Amedeo Modigliani was born in Livorno, Italy, on 12 July 1884[8]. He began studying painting at age fourteen, and later attended the Istituto di Belle Arti in Venice.How did amedeo modigliani?
Amedeo Modigliani began studying painting at age fourteen. He first experimented with sculpture during the summer of 1901[8] and the following year attended the Istituto di Belle Arti in Venice.How old was amedeo modigliani when he died?
Amedeo Modigliani died in 1920[8] at the age of 36.
Sources
Editorial draws on the following primary and tertiary references for Amedeo Modigliani.
- [1] museum Brooklyn Museum Used for: museum holdings.
- [2] museum Toledo Museum of Art Used for: museum holdings.
- [3] museum Courtauld Gallery Used for: museum holdings.
- [4] museum Buffalo AKG Art Museum Used for: museum holdings.
- [5] museum Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp Used for: museum holdings.
- [6] museum Allen Memorial Art Museum Used for: museum holdings.
- [7] wikidata Wikidata: Q120993 Used for: identifiers.
- [8] wikipedia Wikipedia: Amedeo Modigliani Used for: biography, birth dates, death dates, identifiers, movement attribution, nationality.
- [9] book guggenheim-guhe00solo Used for: biography.
- [10] book guggenheim-museum00solo Used for: biography.
- [11] book Carol Strickland and John Boswell, The Annotated Mona Lisa _ba crash course in art history from prehistoric to post-modern _cCarol Strickland and John Boswell Used for: biography.
Editorial overseen by Solis Prints. Sources verified 2026-05-31. Click a source for details, or hover over [N] in the page above to preview.
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