Pino Pascali

Pino Pascali (19 October 1935 – 11 September 1968) was an Italian artist, sculptor, set designer and performer.

Biography

Pino Pascali was born on October 19, 1935, in Bari, Italy. It was through this exhibition that he first showed his "fake sculptures," a series of shaped-canvases that first appear to be solid sculptures but are actually paintings that present abstract forms suggesting animals, plants and landscapes.

The quote above by Pascali, shows the roots of the strong connection of these war items as toys to a strong war presence in his childhood.

Opposite to the "Armi series" in appearance, Pascali presented organic forms in a dream-like universe that, like the "fake sculptures," play on the relationship between illusion and reality.

Another famous sculpture by Pascali is the 32 m² di mare circa, or Approximately 32 m² of sea. Done in 1967 this sculpture consists of 30 shallow "trays" containing dyed blue water. These tiles were placed adjacently of the floor, except for 6 where a zig-zag path was created so that the viewer could walk through this "sea" that Pascali has created for them. This influence of the mirror-esque quality of water can be seen in his other works, Fiume, (River), Fiume con foce tripla, (River with triple estuary), Acque stagnanti, (Stagnant waters), and Canali d'irrigazione, (Irrigation canals).

Art market In 2016, Pascali's Code di Delfino (1996), a canvas on a wooden structure, was sold at Christie's London for a record £2.2million (£2.6 million with fees).