Alfredo Volpi 1

Alfredo Volpi (Lucca, Italy 1896 - São Paulo, São Paulo, 1988). Painter. Moved with his parents to São Paulo in 1897 and, while still a child, studied at the Escola Profissional Masculina do Brás. Later worked as a cabinetmaker, woodcarver and bookbinder. In 1911, he became a decorative painter and started painting on wood and canvas. In the 1930s, he joined the Santa Helena Group with various artists, such as Mário Zanini and Francisco Rebolo, among others. In 1936, he took part in the formation of the Union of Plastic Artists of São Paulo and, in 1937, joined the Paulista Artistic Family (FAP). His initial production was figurative, with an emphasis on seascapes executed in Itanhaém, São Paulo. In the late 1930s, he came into contact with the painter Emídio de Souza (1868-1949). In 1940, he won the competition promoted by the Institute of National Historical and Artistic Heritage (IPHAN), with works based on the monuments of the cities of São Miguel and Embu, and became enchanted with colonial art, focusing on popular and religious themes. Works for Osirarte, a tile company created in 1940 by Rossi Osir. His first solo exhibition took place in São Paulo, at the Itá Gallery, in 1944. In 1950, he travels to Europe accompanied by Rossi Osir and Mario Zanini, when he is impressed by pre-renaissance works. From the 1950s onwards, he began to produce compositions that gradually moved towards abstraction. In 1956 and 1957, he was invited to participate in the National Exhibitions of Concrete Art and maintained contact with artists and poets from the concrete group. In 1953 he received the prize for Best National Painter at the São Paulo International Biennial, shared with Di Cavalcanti (1897-1976); in 1958, the Guggenheim Award; in 1962 and 1966, the prize for best Brazilian painter from the Rio de Janeiro art critics, among others.

Por: Sala Rússia