A new show at Venice's Fenice opera house will be an eye-opener for Miles Davis fans who did not know that the jazz legend was also an accomplished painter.
The exhibition is entitled 'The Colour of Miles Davis - paintings, drawings, videos' and runs until July 31. It features dozens of the great trumpeter's works, which are spread around different parts of the historic theatre. The paintings are large, very colourful and created in a variety of styles, both abstract and figurative.
They were produced in the 1980s, during a spell in which Davis' temporarily used the brush as his main form of artistic expression, rather than the trumpet. All the works are intriguing and some, like his interpretation of New York by Night, are strikingly beautiful, curator Chiara Bertola said.
"Davis did not limit himself to painting the sounds of his jazz, he took up a new form and sought out his own original style, which continually developed," added Bertola. "Music and painting contaminated each other (in his art). These two languages of expression came to resemble each other in ways they had never done before".
The show gives visitors insight into the soul of one of the most influential and innovative musicians of the 20th century, a man whose work was at the forefront of almost every major post-war development in jazz. One of the highlights is a fascinating self-portrait. In this, the artist's large, stern eyes emerge through a grid of coloured circles to confront the viewer.
The works are accompanied by Davis' music and video footage of his concerts.
The world-famous 18th-century Fenice opera house was devastated by a fire in 1996. It was re-opened in 2003 after a state-of-the-art renovation involving meticulous historical research using original photographs and documents. The exhibition is part of a series of initiatives being held in the Veneto region to mark the 80th anniversary of Davis' birth and the 15th anniversary of his death.
This array of concerts, conferences and exhibitions also marks the 15th anniversary of his last concert in Italy, which he played at Castelfranco Veneto in July 1991. One of these events is The Sounds of Miles Davis show, which opens at Bassano del Grappa's Palazzo Agostinelli on June 24.
This features film footage of Davis' life and career, some of which has never been show to the public before, and multimedia technology that will enable visitors to listen to the whole catalogue of his music.
