Since its opening, Galleria Michela Cattai has focused on the study, research and selection of works of Modern and Contemporary Art and Design by some of the most important artists and designers of the twentieth century and brought them together under one roof.

Follow me on instagram

© 2016 Galleria Michela Cattai

gianfranco-zappettini

Gianfranco Zappettini

Artist

Gianfranco Zappettini was born in Genova in 1939.He entered the world of art in 1962, after having had his first solo exhibition at Palazzetto Rosso in Genova and became part of the studio of german architect Konrad Wachsmann, where he learnt formal rigor. Gianfranco Zappettini is identified by analytical painting, bound by the analysis of operative techniques and the paintings processes that we can find particularly in his white paintings, obtained by the process of creating a black canvas that he then covered with quartz powder mixed with white paint, applied with a paint roller. The painting of Gianfranco Zappettini is created by filling the void: adding something only to take it away. For the artist, painting is not something that you can see, but it is imagery that has to be discovered on a deeper level, for example, ‘what are’: surface, colour, process, canvas, frame and materials used. The work of the painter must be recognised as the phases of the creation of this work. His research evolved with superimposed canvases, where a part of the canvas is limited and filled with anonymous pencil designs. In 1977 Gianfranco Zappettini participated in the exhibition Documenta 6, held in Kassel where he exhibited the superimposed canvases for the first time. During the 1980s, his spiritual research led him on many travels and influenced his painting causing it to become more symbolic.However, in the 1990s, his work returned to the more essential style and most recently we can find the symbolism of the first years acentuated with the red, blue and yellow tones. Following this period of colour, he opted to reintroduce white. The act of painting became imperceptible and even at first sight, we find ourselves able to understand that within the painting : it’s the absence which provides the presence. Gianfranco Zappettini lives and works in Chiavari.

Photo credits: VuzaCommons –  Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.