Armando Marrocco

Armando Marrocco was born in Galatina, Italy, in 1939. Showing an innate artistic talent, his parents arranged apprenticeships for him with a tinsmith and a stonemason. There, he grew fascinated with material and the artisanal process, which would shape his later work. 

Marrocco later pursued a more formal artistic education in his hometown.  In 1959, he met Lucio Fontana, on whose advice he moved to Milan in 1962. Around this time, Marrocco also produced his first significant body of work, the Bianco Mediterraneo (White Mediterranean) series, combining together simple materials and showcasing his interest in form and interrelation of objects.

During the 1960s, Marrocco experimented with cheap or discarded materials, creating works relating to the kinetic art movement. The Intrecci series, begun in this decade, embodies the artist's novel use of familiar materials.  In 1970, he met Pierre Restany, the founder of the Nouveau Réalisme movement, who became a key supporter and was instrumental in increasing Marrocco's recognition on the international scene. 

During the 1970s and 1980s, Marrocco explored the relationship between an individual and their environment. One of the most important works from this period, L’uomo e la formica (Man and Ant) (1968), was comprised of over 2000 live ants. Additionally, Marrocco continued to create assemblages using found objects and discarded materials, such as the so-called fasciature (bandages), works in wood wrapped in rags, gauze, and strips of canvas.

A further notable aspect of Marrocco's oeuvre are his sacred works; the artist has created several artworks for Italian churches. He has exhibited internationally, including at the 2010 Venice Architecture Biennale, and was the focus of an exhibition at the Italian Institute of Culture, Cologne, Germany, in 2012. Marrocco lives and works in Milan.