Giorgio de Chirico
Italian, 1888­1978
The Philosopher’s Conquest
1914
Oil on canvas
125.1 x 99.1 cm
Joseph Winterbotham Collection, 1939.405
© 1994 Estate of Giorgio de Chirico /VAGA, New York

The objects in this painting—artichokes, a cannon, a clock, a train in the background—are fairly ordinary. Yet by placing them together in odd ways, the artist has created a strange and disturbing image. 

Why are there no people, only shadows? Why are the artichokes not only the same shape, but the same size as the cannon balls? The clock indicates that it is early afternoon, but there are long shadows. The artist meant these objects to be elements of a puzzle, a dream, that the viewer must solve.