BIO
Fabio Pietrantonio was born in Turin (Italy) on November 27, 1966.
He began his artistic experience through the organization of theme parties and events in Ibiza (Spain), Porto Cervo (Sardinia), and Milan, planning and creating all the artwork and decorations. In these places, starting in the early 90s, the first participation in collective exhibitions with other Italian artists also began. Also in Sardinia, he got to know the sculptor Gaspare from Brescia, of which he became assistant for about three years, participating in the creation of works of religious subjects commissioned by the Vatican Museums, an experience that would mark Pietrantonio's first contact with sacred iconography and his autonomous and original approach to biblical symbols. The travels and long stays in Australia proved to be very positive for its artistic growth path. He soon came into contact with groups of artists and schools in Sydney and Byron Bay, but his encounter with indigenous peoples strongly influenced his training. Pietrantonio begins his personal research by observing the symbolism and spirituality of the Australian Aborigines; drawing from a civilization still tied to a primitive lifestyle and from a culture that is intact and not contaminated by progress and industrialization, he becomes fully aware of what will be the constitutive elements of his poetic vision focused on a rediscovered inner balance and a harmonious relationship with nature.
It will be another trip to mark him deeply this time in New Mexico where he has the opportunity to get to know and explore the Native American Pueblos, meeting the "elderly" and discovering the suggestions of the rituals and the charm of the celebration through the symbolism of the sacred. The artist perceives an intimate message from these cultures and understands the
importance of overcoming the states of alienation and the anxieties that distinguish contemporary Western society by rediscovering an original and organic relationship with creation. The "cosmic" order of Pietrantonio's work is expressed through the use of materials such as wood, stone, dust, sand and pigments balanced with metals, gauze, fabrics, ropes and even gold petals. He carefully selects objects by taking them from pristine environments and then carefully recombining them on the canvas, in installations or in ritual performances in search of harmony of shapes, colours and sensations.
Meeting him during his exhibitions and in preparation for them in his ateliers in Milan and Turin, people come into direct contact with the artist by sharing his creative flair of the moment. Fabio Pietrantonio, with his sunny, friendly, and dynamic personality, is the exact opposite of the stereotype of a reserved and tormented artist who pours conflict, anxiety, and existential tension into his works. After the series of terrorist attacks that took place in the world in 2004, Pietrantonio began to paint and represent totemic animals, symbols of protection that transmit messages of peace and faith. Strongly impressed by the figure of Karol Wojtila, Pietrantonio begins a parallel cycle of sacred art, interpreting various portraits of John Paul II and focusing in particular on the message of intense spirituality that emerged in the last stages of the pontificate marked by suffering and the fight against disease. The mystical yearning that distinguishes Pietrantonio's research goes beyond individual religious beliefs and investigates, according to a pantheistic and shamanic vision, the profound sense of communion and reunion between man and nature.
Active with exhibitions, performances and installations all over the world, Fabio Pietrantonio has chosen to live in secluded and serene places, among the unspoiled nature of the Alps, at the border between Italy and France, and in Sardinia, drawing from these places a continuous source of inspiration for their works. His Milanese atelier, a few steps from Santa Maria delle Grazie, is a place designed for sharing and exchanging ideas with friends, collectors and cultural operators; since September 2015, it has also been the home of the documentary archive whose staff is responsible for cataloguing and enhancing the artist's production by organizing exhibition events, performances and publications.
