Enrico Castellani (4 August 1930 – 1 December 2017) was an Italian artist. He was active in Italy from the early 1960s, and associated with
Piero Manzoni and . From 1959 he made monochromatic geometric
relief
Relief is a sculpture, sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''wikt:relief, relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give ...
s using nails from a
nail-gun to distort his canvases.
In 2010 he received the
Praemium Imperiale for painting.
Life
Castellani was born on 4 August 1930 in
Castelmassa
Castelmassa is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Rovigo in the Italy, Italian region Veneto, located about southwest of Venice and about west of Rovigo.
Castelmassa borders the following municipalities: Calto, Castelnovo Bariano, ...
in the
province of Rovigo, in the
Veneto
Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...
. He studied in Brussels, first
sculpture
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
and painting at the
Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts
The Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Brussels ( ''(ArBA-EsA)''; ) is an art school in Brussels, Belgium, founded in 1711. Starting from modest beginnings in a single room in Brussels Town Hall, Brussels' Town Hall, it has since 1876 been operat ...
, and then architecture at the
École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Visuels de La Cambre. He then went to live in
Milan
Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
. Castellani collaborated with artists such as
Getulio Alviani,
Piero Manzoni, and others.
Death
He died on 1 December 2017 at his home, the Castello Orsini of
Celleno
Celleno is a ''comune'' (municipality) of 1 297 inhabitants in the Province of Viterbo in the Italian region Lazio, located about northwest of Rome and about north of Viterbo
Viterbo (; Central Italian, Viterbese: ; ) is a city and ''comune ...
, in the
province
A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
Viterbo
Viterbo (; Central Italian, Viterbese: ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Lazio region of Italy, the Capital city, capital of the province of Viterbo.
It conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento (see Ferentium) in ...
in
Lazio
Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...
.
References
* ''Enrico Castellani, New Angular, Double Angular, 2009-2011'' in "MozArt" - edited by Bruno Corà , Perugia, 3Arte - Ali&no editrice, n.1, 2012, p. 6-14 - ISBN 978-88-6254-092-6
External links
Art Directory: Enrico Castellani*
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20110223204646/http://www.haunchofvenison.com/en/index.php#page=home.artists.enrico_castellani Hauch of Venison: Enrico CastellaniA tribute to Enrico Castellani with photos and interview from CÃ Pesaro Venice exhibition, September 2012
1930 births
2017 deaths
20th-century Italian painters
20th-century Italian male artists
Italian male painters
21st-century Italian painters
Italian contemporary artists
21st-century Italian male artists
People from Castelmassa
Recipients of the Praemium Imperiale
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