Pietro Consagra, Mazara del Vallo 1920 - 2005 Milan
Introduction
Pietro Consagra was one of Europe’s most renowned sculptors of the postwar era. Born in Mazara del Vallo in Sicily, Consagra attended the Accademia di Belle Arti in Palermo before moving in 1944 to Rome, just as the city was starting to commence its reconstruction in the wake of World War II. Consagra’s distinctive vision for a new form of abstract sculpture began to coalesce following a formative visit to Paris in 1946, which moreover marked the beginning of an active dialogue with the international avant-garde. Consagra rejected the traditions of three-dimensional sculpture with the aim of fostering a more direct mode of interaction between the work of art and its viewer. Working in bronze and iron, the artist created radical sculptures that flattened their materials almost to the point of two-dimensionality. Consagra quickly garnered international acclaim. He exhibited at the Venice Biennale for the first time in 1950 and participated in ten further iterations, winning the Grand Prize for sculpture in 1960. He received prizes at the Biennale in Sao Paolo in 1955 and the Carnegie International in 1958, as well as the Prix de la Critique in Brussels in 1959. In 1967 he spent a year in Minneapolis, where he also created large scale sculptures, and exhibited at the Marlborough Gerson Gallery in New York. In 2001, he was awarded the Golden Medal for Art and Culture from the President of the Italian Republic. His large-scale sculptures grace important urban landscapes, with one standing at the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
Works
Exhibitions
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BEYOND CANVAS
Art Basel OVR: Italian Modern Artists Pushing the 'Fabric' of Tradition to its Limits, 4 - 6 Dec 2020VIRTUAL EXHIBITION Material experimentation, technical innovation, and conceptual invention are at the core of modern Italian art. Daring and pioneering figures including Carla Accardi, Alighiero...Read more -
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
24 Jun - 1 Aug 2019In collaboration with Burzio.Read more -
Ugo Mulas
Creative Intersections, 4 Mar - 24 May 2019Robilant + Voena are pleased to present the first solo exhibition of the Italian photographer Ugo Mulas (1928-1973) in London and the UK. The show...Read more
Videos
Press
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Why Victoria Beckham is exhibiting 20th-century Italian art
Melanie Gerlis, Financial Times
July 4, 2019 'In collaboration with Robilant+Voena gallery, Beckham’s London store now includes nine paintings and sculptures by the likes of Lucio Fontana,... -
Fontana, Consagra e Scheggi: l’arte italiana conquista Victoria Beckham [Translated]
Nicol Degli Innocenti, Il Sole 24 Ore
July 4, 2019 'On display in the London boutique are works of great artists loaned by the Robilant+Voena Gallery... -
Victoria Beckham features Fontana in tie-up with gallery Robilant+Voena
Francis Allitt, Antiques Trade Gazette
July 2, 2019 'Victoria Beckham has launched a new collaboration with the London art market, installing artworks from Mayfair’s Robilant + Voena in... -
The Renaissance of Italian Art
Jane Morris, Art Agency, Partners
May 9, 2019 'Consagra played a key role in postwar Italian sculpture,” says Benedict Tomlinson, Director of European gallery Robilant + Voena, which... -
Ugo Mulas and the Italian Post-War Artists of the 1960s and 70s
Balasz Takac, Widewalls
May 7, 2019 'In order to present his practice, Robilant + Voena is hosting the first ever solo exhibition of Mulas in London... -
A new way of seeing Italian art – Ugo Mulas at Robilant + Voena
Irene Machetti, FAD Magazine
March 15, 2019 Robilant + Voena present the photographs of Ugo Mulas in an exhibition that reveals the power of Italian post-war art... -
Where to be: Untangling Frieze and other events this week (October 1-7)
Frances Allitt, Antiques Trade Gazette
October 1, 2018 Robilant + Voena hold the first solo exhibition of the Italian sculptor Pietro Consagra this month, highlighting works he produced...