PINO PINELLI

Having studied art in Catania, Pinelli moved to Milan in 1963 where he became attracted to the artistic debates of influential artists such as Lucio Fontana, Piero Manzoni, and Enrico Castellani, as well as other artists from the Zero group. In the early 1970s Pinelli began paring down his works developing a series of monochrome paintings. From 1973 his works are titled simply Painting, followed by the first letter of their colour (R for red). Pinelli’s Topologies and Monochromes series focus on the painted surface and experiment with the juxtaposition and combination of smaller paintings on a large canvas. Later, in his Disseminations series from 1976 the wall itself becomes part of the work thus breaking down the relationship between the painting and its surroundings. In the same years, Pinelli stopped using canvas instead opting for materials such as flannel, giving the work a tactile component.

Without any fundamental attachment to the space in which they reside, Pinelli’s paintings cannot be comfortably categorised thus allowing them to grow, without the boundaries of a canvas, into often expansive, modular and dynamic forms. By moving the painting away from the canvas, Pinelli challenged the traditional conception of painting and enriched the constantly-evolving dialogue between art and life.