Gare Montparnasse (The Melancholy of Departure)

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Gare Montparnasse (The Melancholy of Departure)
Giorgio de Chirico, 1914
Oil on canvas
140 × 184.5 cm, 55⅛ × 72⅞ in
Museum of Modern Art, New York City

Gare Montparnasse (The Melancholy of Departure) (1914) is a painting by the Greek-Italian metaphysical painter Giorgio de Chirico. Many of de Chirico’s works were inspired by the introspective feelings evoked by travel. He was born in Greece to Italian parents. This work was painted during a period when he lived in Paris.

The painting depicts the Gare Montparnasse train station in Paris, France. It is a classic example of de Chirico’s style, depicting an angular perspective on an outdoor architectural setting in the long shadows and deep colors of early evening. On the horizon is a steam train with a plume of white smoke billowing away from it. The train image appears several times in de Chirico’s work. In the foreground is a bunch of banannas, another recurring image in de Chirico’s work (cf. Le Rêve Transformé) .

In 1916 de Chirico painted another work simply titled The Melancholy of Departure. In 1987 the American jazz musicians Mark Isham and Art Lande released a song titled “The Melancholy of Departure” on their collaborative album We Begin.