MIMMO PALADINO

(B. 1948)

Untitled
1985

Footnotes

Provenance
Private Collection, UK

Exhibited
Monterrey, Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de Monterrey, Mimmo Paladino, 1994, pp. 173, 177, no. 16, another example exhibited and illustrated in black and white

Literature
Enzo Di Martino, Paladino-La Scultura 1980-2008, Milan 2009, pp. 55, 408, illustrated in black and white


Mimmo Paladino, a protagonist of the Italian Transavanguardia movement, dedicated the early years of his artistic career to exploring the religious themes and mythological interpretations present in the outstanding sculptural examples presented here.

Despite the present works varying styles and dates, the pivotal role of the human figure becomes evident; with motifs clearly inspired by Classical mythology, Christianity, Egyptian and tribal art. Figura con Stella with its bowed head, facing the star displays an act of subordination, further highlighted by the star motif, which represents the heavens or home of the gods. Untitled, which has similar connotations, exhibits seemingly sacrificial objects lying on the table-top alluding to death and sacrifice. Paladino argues that while these themes inspire his work, they don't define it: "The figures in my paintings, the animals, the masks, the theme of death – I do not want to explain or analyse them. They are the roots out of which the picture develops, but not its content." (the artist in: Studio International, Mimmo Paladino: Black and White, studiointernational.com, 27 September 2023) Although unmistakably contemporary, Paladino collaborates with the past to make his sculptures timeless and universal.

Mimmo Paladino was a key member of the Transavanguardia movement, which is considered one of the most influential movements of post-war Italian art. Coined by the critic Achille Bonito Oliva, Transavanguardia demonstrated an international revival of expressionist painting and sculpture in the late 1970s and 1980s. Directly translated as 'beyond the avant-garde', the movement reacted against the original avant-garde with an aim to return to the traditional act of painting, one that elicited emotion, especially joy, and provided meaning. The movement was marked by five prominent artists, including Paladino, whose artworks drew attention at the 1980 Venice Biennale for their diverse styles and common vision. According to Oliva, Transavanguardia relied heavily on the materialism of techniques and new materials, rejecting conceptual ideas and recuperating the intensity of the image and the narrative. The present works are clear examples of Paladino's take on the Transavanguardia movement, a movement which became an internationally recognised phenomenon and whose works are highly sought after by collectors today.