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Renzo Vespignani (1924 - 26 April 2001)"Francis Bacon" (list of biographies), 2001, ''KLEINOS edizione d'arte'' (Italian translated), webpage:

. was an Italian painter, printmaker and illustrator. "Obituaries - Hiroshi Teshigahara, Renzo Vespignani" (news), Brant Publications, Inc., 2001, FindArticles, webpage:
Obit-Vespignani
Vespignani illustrated the works of

Boccaccio Giovanni Boccaccio (, , ; 16 June 1313 – 21 December 1375) was an Italian writer, poet, correspondent of Petrarch, and an important Renaissance humanist. Born in the town of Certaldo, he became so well known as a writer that he was some ...

Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It typ ...

and

T. S. Eliot Thomas Stearns Eliot (26 September 18884 January 1965) was a poet, essayist, publisher, playwright, literary critic and editor.Bush, Ronald. "T. S. Eliot's Life and Career", in John A Garraty and Mark C. Carnes (eds), ''American National Biogr ...

, among others. In 1956, he co-founded the magazine ''

Citta Aperta ''Citta'' ( Pali and Sanskrit: चित्त; pronounced ''chitta''; IAST: ''citta)'' is one of three overlapping terms used in the '' nikaya'' to refer to the mind, the others being ''manas'' and '' viññāṇa''. Each is sometimes used i ...

("Open City")'' and in 1963, co-founded the group ''

II Pro e II Contro II is the Roman numeral for 2. II may also refer to: Biology and medicine *Image intensifier, medical imaging equipment *Invariant chain, a polypeptide involved in the formation and transport of MHC class II protein *Optic nerve, the second c ...

'' (Pro and Con) for neorealism in figure art. __TOC__

Life and work

Renzo Vespignani was born in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

in 1924, and he grew up in a Roman working-class suburb named ''Portonaccio''. He began to paint during the difficult years of the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

occupation of Rome, hiding himself at Lino Bianchi Barriviera’s residence. His drawings in 1944 recorded the ravages of German-occupied Rome in realistic detail. Those images, often likened to German Expressionist works, were featured in his first solo exhibition at Rome's Galleria La Margherita in 1945. Meanwhile, he collaborated as a designer with many political-literary reviews done as poetic documentaries, relating to the cinema of

Rossellini Rossellini is a common Italian surname. Other spellings include: Rosselini. Rossellini may refer to: * Roberto Rossellini, Italian film director ** Renzo Rossellini, producer, son of Roberto ** Isabella Rossellini, actress, daughter of Roberto ** ...

and

Vittorio de Sica Vittorio De Sica ( , ; 7 July 1901 – 13 November 1974) was an Italian film director and actor, a leading figure in the neorealist movement. Four of the films he directed won Academy Awards: '' Sciuscià'' and '' Bicycle Thieves'' (honorar ...

. After the war, Vespignani contributed illustrations to political and literary journals. At

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

's Hugo Gallery, his works were introduced to the U.S. in 1948. In 1956 he co-founded, with other intellectuals, the review ''

("City Opened")'', a magazine concerning the city culture's problems. At this time, his work had begun to focus on life in the harsh neighborhoods of

's periphery, displaying a connection with the films and literature of

Italian Neorealism Italian neorealism ( it, Neorealismo), also known as the Golden Age, is a national film movement characterized by stories set amongst the poor and the working class. They are filmed on location, frequently with non-professional actors. They pr ...

. In 1963, with the painters,

Ferroni Ferroni is an Italian surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Egisto Ferroni (1835–1912), Italian painter *Giorgio Ferroni (1908–1981), Italian film director, film editor and screenwriter * Giovanni Tommasi Ferroni (born 1967), Itali ...

, Ennio Calabria,

Giuseppe Guerreschi Giuseppe Guerreschi (Milan, 1929 – Nice, 1985) was an Italian painter. Biography Guerreschi started taking evening painting classes at the Brera Academy in 1947 while working as a clerk in a Milanese bank. In 1951, he quit his job and attended ...

Piero Guccione Piero is an Italian given name. Notable people with the name include: *Piero Angela (1928–2022), Italian television host * Piero Barucci (born 1933), Italian academic and politician *Piero del Pollaiuolo (c. 1443–1496), Italian painter *Piero ...

e Alberto Gianquinto and the art critics Dario Micacchi, Antonio Del Guercio and Morosini, he founded the group '' Il pro e il Contro'' ( Pro and Con), which immediately became a point of reference for the newborn neo-figures experiments. During the decade of the 1960s, Vespignani and the group sought to develop new critically and intellectually engaged figural art. Vespignani illustrated the works of

and

, among others. Renzo Vespignani exhibited works across Italy and had participated in the

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...

four times. A 1985 exhibition at the

French Academy in Rome The French Academy in Rome (french: Académie de France à Rome) is an Academy located in the Villa Medici, within the Villa Borghese, on the Pincio (Pincian Hill) in Rome, Italy. History The Academy was founded at the Palazzo Capranica in 16 ...

examined the rapport between Vespignani's work and that of the Neorealist poet and filmmaker

Pier Paolo Pasolini Pier Paolo Pasolini (; 5 March 1922 – 2 November 1975) was an Italian poet, filmmaker, writer and intellectual who also distinguished himself as a journalist, novelist, translator, playwright, visual artist and actor. He is considered one of ...

. After the 1970s, Vespignani rarely exhibited abroad, although two bodies of his work from the 1990s, ''Manhattan Transfer'' and ''An Afternoon in Chelsea'', had been inspired by visits to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

. Renzo Vespignani died on April 26, 2001, while undergoing surgery.

Notes

External links

* Obituary webpage
Obit-Vespignani
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vespignani, Renzo Italian illustrators 20th-century Italian painters 20th-century Italian male artists Italian male painters Italian contemporary artists 1924 births 2001 deaths Painters from Rome

Life and work

See also

Notes

External links