The Eventuality of Destiny

In the years following World War I, artists across Europe sought to put the disruptions of war behind them. Searching for a new artistic vocabulary, they moved away from the fragmented forms of prewar Cubism and looked to the classical tradition, forging what was known as the “return to order.” This new style had many sources of inspiration, including the art of ancient Greece and Rome, the Renaissance, and even later Neoclassical revivals. Giorgio de Chirico was likewise attracted to the idea of classicism; his The Eventuality of Destiny is in part the result of his study of the works and techniques of the Old Masters.