GIUSEPPE SANTOMASO WORKS

- GIUSEPPE SANTOMASO ARTIST

Joseph Santomaso, born in 1907 in Venice to a Venetian goldsmith and a Paduan woman, was a Italian painter among the most influential of the 20th century. From an early age, he shows an innate talent for painting, which prompts him to first attend the Bevilacqua La Masa Foundation and subsequently theVenice Academy of Fine Arts, where he comes into contact with the sculptor Alberto Viani.

Initially, his style era naturalistic and figurative, typical of many young artists of the time. However, Giuseppe Santomaso is not satisfied with following traditional canons and is getting ever closer to avant-garde art. In 1937, he traveled to the Netherlands to study the Impressionists and Fauves, and the use of color in works such as those of Van Gogh had a significant impact on his artistic evolution.

His first personal exhibition took place in Paris in 1939, at the Left Bank Gallery. In the 1940s, he actively participated in the anti-fascist movement, contributing to the foundation of the group of artists New Italian artistic secession It is New front of the arts. This period marks a turning point in his artistic production, in which the style evolves towards aabstract and lyrical expression.

His still life and portrait works are replaced by a freer and more experimental painting. From 1948, Giuseppe Santomaso began exhibiting regularly at Venice Biennial, consolidating its reputation and obtaining numerous awards, including the First Prize for Italian Painting in 1954.

In parallel with the exhibitions and artistic events, he also carried out a significant teaching activity at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice from 1957 to 1975.

The trip to the United States in 1957 marks a crucial moment in the artist's career. During his stay in New York, Giuseppe Santomaso comes into contact with the exponents of theAbstract expressionism, which greatly influence his style and his artistic themes. His works become ever more luminous and architectural, exploring the possibilities of color and light.

In the 1960s, the artist faced another phase of change in his artistic production. He approaches the minimalism, reducing shapes and simplifying compositions to essential geometric elements. This period marks a greater reflection on the very nature of painting, exploring the autonomy of the image and the interaction between form and colour.

In the last years of his life, Giuseppe Santomaso continues to produce significant works, maintaining a prominent place in the panorama of Italian contemporary art. In 1990, shortly after his death, a major retrospective dedicated to his work was organized at the Rusca Art Gallery of Locarno.

Giuseppe Santomaso was an eclectic and visionary artist, capable of adapting and reinventing himself throughout his career. His ability to express abstract emotions and tensions through color and form made him one of the leading representatives of thelyrical and expressionist abstractionism in Italy. His artistic legacy continues to inspire and influence subsequent generations of artists.