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Giuseppe Fortunato was born in Notaresco (Teramo, Italy) on 5 November 1956. His artistic experieNCe develops siNCe an early age: he exhibits in his first solo exhibition at the age of 27; he is known siNCe the Eighties for participating in the most important art exhibitions in his country and abroad too. In the early days, his artistic production is definitely influeNCed by the metaphysical painting and, at a later stage, by elements of the surrealism; in the Eighties he eNCounters and spends some times with Remo Brindisi, the master of the new Italian figurative art. It represents an important landmark of his growth: from this eNCounter, he perceives that artistic sap, that will be an iNCessant impulse, even though he doesn’t follow his pictorial style. Toward the end of the Eighties, together with other painters from Abruzzo, he creates the Images movement. His continuous research in refining his technique is expressed by landing to a brand new and very personal language that can’t be found anywhere else, sometimes effacing the thematic too: so it is the Assempaforismo ( a fortunate pictorial amendatory apodictic assembly). Critics are interested and follow closely this path, that it is still flourishing and constantly innovating. ‘I wouldn’t ever paint a flower bowl’ (even though he made his debut with the figurative art), so the master Fortunato replies to the interviewer on duty, who asks themself about the meaning of his works; from these few words, the esseNCe of his work is clear, i.e. the wish to focus his attention on the research of uNCommon and deep emotions for the end-users. In 1985, still before his thirties, he exhibits in the prestigious Salle Roesselmann au Koifhus in Colmar, FraNCe; three years later, in 1988 at the Expo Arte of Bari, the artist steals the media visibility to the detriment of works of well-known artists such as Fontana, Schifano, Cucchi: the artist, in this performaNCe, got ‘crucified’, tied with ropes to a cross for hours. This episode was in the first pages of the newspaper and in the opening of the TV newscasts. Throughout the decade of the Nineties, from a neo-renaissaNCe point of view, the artist opens himself to the multidisciplinarity, by deepening the pictorial discourse together with sculpture, performaNCes, artistic installation, digital art and video art. This is linked, however, to coNCeptual art, that he won’t ever abandon, as the critic Armando Ginesi affirmed, referring to the catalyst coNCept of the expressive reality. Pop art definitely brings an important and remarkable legacy in the experieNCe of Fortunato, definable as a refereNCe to the poetry of the objects that often do return in the various cycles of the master. In the early Nineties, the ‘Primavere’ (‘Springs’) are the embodiment of his continuous analysis and fitful research, it turns out to be an orderly, schematic, symmetrical but eNChanted and fairy-like multicoloured expression. The dream remains a primary element, even if as a lesser important outline of a deliberately distorted representation of his era, as the critic Occhipinti writes. In 1995, Giuseppe Fortunato moves with his wife and their two sons to Le Marche and, for a decade, he is absorbed in his parallel activity of entrepreneur and sport manager. In these years he dedicates to the stylistic research, to new figurative communication forms, in which the graphic organisation of heterogeneous elements and materials is synthesised into the specificity of the figurative style with the ‘innate physicalness of the matter’ as described by the critic FraNCesco Gialluca. Between the end of the Nineties and the early 2000, he deepens with dedication the application of the digital art, combining the past styles of the Pop Art with the present context of technological daily evolution and chipping of those last frontiers of global communication. At the same time, he gives life to a new cycle, known as ‘Colate’ siNCe 2006. A first step towards the internationalisation of such activity comes with the event ‘Colate Tijuana’, directed by Marcell Bolyevich at the cultural centre Pasaje Rodriguez in Baja California, Mexico. From 2008 until today, he makes numerous exhibitions across the country, thanks to the fruitful collaboration with the Professor Armando Ginesi, one of the most influential art critics, Honorary Consul of the Russian Federation, Knight of the Grand Cross of the Italian Republic and Grand Officer of the Order of Saint Agatha. Among other events, Ginesi curates the exhibition Metempsicosi of Giuseppe Fortunato, in which he compares the promineNCe of the sixteenth century painter Lorenzo Lotto to his works. In 2008, the artist donates to the City of Cingoli the sculpture ‘After the Miracle’ for the Parco delle Pietre Vive (a local park, adorned with art works): it’s a full-sized mannequin in Carrara marble dust on a 5 metres high steel chair. He realises for the Museum of Cupramontana ‘A Gift In Loan’, a work representing a 1,5 metres glass of wine on a 200 Kg clay bed, with a Verdicchio coloured resin that flows from the glass. Relationships with relevant critics, such as Sgarbi, Dorfles and the aforementioned Ginesi, have been frequent over the years. With Vittorio Sgarbi, the artist has had a long and interesting correspondeNCe dating back to the Nineties. In 2013, the Fondazione Fortunato was born: it commits primarily into the promotion, the archiving and into the distribution of the artistic production of the artist Fortunato; it iNCludes, furthermore, cultural activities that bring together different attitudes and cultures. For this purpose, the aim of the above-mentioned is to create art into art: that is, to involve different artistic and cultural expressions within the events: music by means of a jazz coNCert, fashion with a fashion show in an environment thought and realised by the artist, theatre by means of a performaNCe in the premises, that are adjacent to the exhibition, the lauNCh of a book. Its intent is, then, to extend its offer to embrace an audieNCe, that is made up of passionate people, who come from different backgrounds and have a different cultural education, but are similar in sensitivity for the moment of artistic expression. The main purpose of the foundation is to invest in the artist’s production, organising events, exhibitions, trade shows, installations, performaNCes, digital communication and so on. The Fondazione Fortunato has participated in Arte Pordenone on May 2013 with a solo show, i.e. with the cycle ‘Colate’. The main event of 2013 arrives on December with ‘Colori e Sorrisi’ at Galleria Galeotti in Macerata, a solo show of the ‘Colate’, in collaboration with people belonging to the Anffas association of Macerata, an association of people with learning and social disabilities: it was an event with charitable purposes, supported by the City of Macerata, the ProviNCe of Macerata, the Marche region, Fondazione Carima, with the attention of the Diocese of Macerata, the critic of the Professor Armando Ginesi and the preseNCe of the testimonial actor Cesare Bocci. ‘The colours are those of the art, that, with its power, brings out the beauty that lies within each one of us, it succeeds in moving, in touching the deep esseNCe of things. Art is unselfishness, is giving to the others an intimate part of oneself. The smiles are those of the people involved in it, who have lived a unique, magic and exciting experieNCe. They could give vent to their creativity, to their own world, to their own way of being. I would thank Master Fortunato that has put his art, his experieNCe, his sensitivity at the service of this noble cause’ this was the greeting of the Mayor of Macerata Romano CaraNCini.
“Colate” by artist Giuseppe Fortunato were very successful across the Channel in 2014: several lots of his works have been sold at auctions in London from July 2014. In particular, Chiswick Auctions and Highroad Auctions sold paintings and sculptures of this artist, hailing from Abruzzo. In the meanwhile, the artistic activity of Fortunato has reached Germany too, where they began a partnership with Auctionata in Berlin. In December of the same year, he inaugurated a solo show in the city of ANCona: an exhibition with a social commitment, regarding non-profit organisations, with a number of subjects inherent the beauties of the city of ANCona. The exhibition was inaugurated with a deep presentation of History of Art by Consul Professor Armando Ginesi, with the participation of cavaliere Renato Barchiesi. In 2014 the artist began a new collaboration with Emanuela Orler, who, subsequently, created a series of television shows, centred on the artistic activity of Fortunato. At the same time, the works of Giuseppe Fortunato were presented at the main exhibition events, thanks to the synergy with Domenico Di Ottavio, of the historic Art Gallery Mirò of Teramo. The artist was invited to the presentation ceremony of the 50th edition of the Mondadori Catalogue of Modern and Contemporary Art published by Urbano Cairo, held at Palazzo Medici Riccardi in FloreNCe. Fortunato has been selected by the critic committee of CAM, considered to be the bible of Art siNCe 1986.
2015 has begun with the artist coming back to his birthplace, in Abruzzo: Aldo Quinzi and Fondazione Fortunato organised an event at the Town CouNCil meeting room of Sant’Egidio alla Vibrata, presented by critic Diego Della Valle, Mayor Rando Angelini and Annunzio Amatucci, couNCillor responsible for culture. In this period, other intense relationships with Art Gallery Micati of Trapani.
Giuseppe Fortunato is published on ArtPrice, leader about auctions information, with appearaNCes in several auction houses in Italy, Germany and UK. In 2016 he joined the Movement Maric with the promoter ViNCenzo Vavuso, the aim is to leave a tangible sign for the community, such as creating artistic and cultural events, dissemination and promotion of Culture and Art. The first exhibition takes place at the Media Library "Marte" in Cava de 'Tirreni (Sa) in October 2016; then "Colori per il sisma" at the "Salone Genovesi" Chamber of Commerce of Salerno in December 2016. In 2017 "Disarmiamo l’ignoranza" in Castel dell'Ovo, Naples, 7 to 20 March. http://www.giuseppefortunato.it/biography.html