Il Commentadore, 1960 belongs to Enrico Baj’s series of imaginative “portraits,” in which the artist

redefined likeness as a psychological and social construction rather than a faithful depiction of an

individual. Although Baj is best known for his satirical portrayals of generals and authoritarian

figures, this work is not a military image. Instead, it presents a broader type: a self-important public

persona assembled from signs of status, rhetoric, and display.



Baj constructs the figure through a collage of oil paint, fabric, and shards of glass, materials that

actively shape the meaning of the work. Fabric suggests decoration, costume, and artifice, evoking

the performative nature of identity. The embedded glass interrupts the painted surface with sharp,

reflective fragments, introducing tension and instability. Together, these elements deny the figure

any sense of unity or permanence, emphasizing instead a personality built from external trappings.



Emerging from Baj’s postwar context in Italy, Il Commentadore reflects the artist’s deep skepticism

toward authority and expertise in all their forms. A co-founder of the Nuclear Art Movement in the

early 1950s, Baj rejected rationalism and academic tradition, which he saw as complicit in the

ideologies that had led to war and mass destruction. His portraits from this period extend that

critique beyond overt power structures, addressing the everyday figures who shape opinion, taste,

and social norms.



Humor plays a central role in the work’s impact. The figure’s exaggerated presence and decorative

excess verge on the absurd, inviting laughter while also provoking unease. By rendering the

“Commander” as a composite of materials and symbols, Baj exposes identity as theatrical and

contingent. Il Commentadore ultimately affirms Baj’s belief that art can dismantle pretensions to

authority—not through solemn critique, but through wit, irony, and material invention.

Sheila and Jan van der Marck often remarked that the artist told them that this painting was a

portrait of Enzo Ferrari who was nicknamed Il Commendatore for his many successes and

determination in founding and growing the Ferrari automotive empire.