2col 12.sculptura n.21.jpg

Fausto Melotti, “Sculptura n. 21,” 1935.

FOR 4/11

FAUSTO MELOTTI SCULPTURE TO OPEN AT ACQUAVELLA GALLERIES APRIL 16 w/1 cut

Avv/gs set 3/26 #732734

NEW YORK CITY — American audiences are relatively unaware of the work of Italian sculptor and mixed-media artist Fausto Melotti (1901–1986). More than 20 major overseas museums own Melotti sculptures, but in the United States they are to be found only at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis.

Acquavella Galleries will present “Fausto Melotti,” an exhibition of more than 65 works on loaned view from the artist’s estate and international museums and private collections from April 16–June 13.

“Europeans are passionate admirers of Fausto Melotti’s sculpture, but Americans have never been given the chance to enjoy his extraordinary talent,” said William Acquavella, president of Acquavella Galleries. “He drew on and contributed to the great innovations of modernist art in midcentury Italy, yet the language of his work is both universal and highly personal. Thanks to the generosity of the Archivio Fausto Melotti, we are finally able to bring the full scope of his life’s work to a new audience in this country.”

Exhibition highlights include “Sculpture No. 21,” 1935, a piece that anticipated the serial minimalism of artists like Donald Judd and Sol LeWitt by three decades. This rectangular construction of nickel plated iron consists of nine spheres and three discs that appear to float in an open geometric cage.

“The Hand,” 1949, presents a vertical terra cotta box (13¾ by 11¾ by 3½ inches) containing a scene in two acts: two hands suspended over a red cloud and the outline of a face on a brass sheet is set upon two rods. Works such as these, known as “teatrini” (toy theaters), suggest stage sets; enclosed sculptures such as this one is an outstanding example of the work that dominated Melotti’s imagination in the 1940s.

Also included is “The Rain,” 1966, brass stems that play with lines and surfaces, creating a game of fullness and emptiness.

A 175-page catalog, featuring 70 large color plates, will accompany this exhibition.

Acquavella Galleries is at 18 East 79th Street. For information, 212-734-6300 or www.acquavellagalleries.com.