Mario Schifano (1934-1998) is the Italian exponent of Pop Art. His works of large format are characterised by monochrome and the use of commercial brands like Coca Cola and Esso. Backed by major Italian and international galleries (Plinio de Martiis and Ileana Sonnabend), along with the “cursed” painters set (including Franco Angeli and Tano Festa), Schifano’s work represented a major turning point in Italian and European contemporary art. A true eclectic, he studied new techniques in painting and was one of the first artists to use a computer to create art, and one of the first to experiment with hybrids involving painting and other forms of art like music, cinema, video and photography. Close to pop culture and the beatnik music scene, like Andy Warhol he collaborated with bands designing covers for various Italian groups. He died of a heart attack aged 64.
In an unusual format, Luca Ronchi’s book reconstructs Mario Schifano’s world, as well as the social and artistic milieu of the period, using the direct accounts of those in the artist’s circle, gathered over time and assembled in the form of almost theatrical dialogues. He thus creates an elaborate and objective portrait that brings his subject alive, as man and artist closely bound up with his time.
The images from the Schifano Archives open up the artist’s private life, and include previously unpublished material and lesser known works.
Nota dell’Archivio Mario Schifano Personaggi
Prima parte 1958-1963
1. Alla fine degli anni cinquanta
2. Monocromi
3. La prima mostra
4. Piazza del Popolo
5. Un altro mondo
Seconda parte 1964-1971
6. Segni d’energia
7. Il clima felice degli anni sessanta
8. Sperimentazioni
9. Palme e stelle
10. Festa cinese
11. Grande angolo, sogni, stelle
12. Fuoco nero
13. Cinema off
14. Umano non umano
15. Wild Horses
16. Tele emulsionate
17. Human Lab
18. Sotto il segno dell’ariete
Terza parte 1972-1981
19. “Contemporanea”
20. Nel dolce rumore della vita
21. Il vortice
22. Una strana gioia di vivere
23. Umano, troppo umano
24. Cold turkey
25. L’ombra di un’ombra
26. The Times They Are a Changin’
Quarta parte 1982-1995
27. Vivere è per amare qualcosa
28. Ansedonia
29. Saxa Rubra
30. Una pittura folgorante
31. Il meglio del meglio
32. L’incendio dei ricordi personali
33. Franco
34. Tano
35. Alle Mantellate
36. Un carattere d’artista
37. Dalla vita in su e dalla vita in giù
38. Patologia della pittura
39. Lo studio laboratorio
40. Assenza di gravità
41. Adieu
42. Alighiero
43. La madre di ogni desiderio
44. Assolutamente falsi
45. Arte democratica
Quinta parte 1996-1998
46. Il quadrificio
47. Crocefisso a un ferro di cavallo
48. L’ultima battaglia
49. Forse per un pittore la morte è solo un colore