Parvenze (Appearances) Painting

Painter, set designer and publicist, born in Itala (ME) in 1945, he has long been one of the most significant and original exponents of the Italian and international art scene. He graduated in architecture at the “Politecnico” of Milan and was trained in the conceptual climate of the ’70s. Essential in his development was the mentorship and friendship with Giulio Carlo Argan. His artistic work is marked by a rigorous reflection on the human being in his existential dimension and in its relationship with the universe. His wide-ranging experimentation it is expressed in the great cycles of paintings, where the predominant use of light and color, together with the development of materials and media used. After his debut in Messina in 1966, he has exhibited in numerous solo and group exhibitions in Italy and abroad. The aesthetic projects (some with the use of lasers) and the maps and graffiti on jute sack stamped are of the 70s; these are followed by paper matrix, six pieces, maps on polythene, then the sidereal projects and maps of the islands of the universes. In “Cosmogonie”, towards the end of the 90s he addresses and explores his favorite themes of Time and Space. The same subjects are also highlighted in the “artist’s books”, including “Cronogenesi” in 1990/1995, ” lead books “, the” golden Book and “Promemoria” in 2005/2006. Light, as a visible expression of religious faith, is an essential element of the five large stained glass windows done by the artist in 2000 in the private chapel of a convent of nuns near Bergamo. In subsequent years, Sciacca has focused his attention on the issue of violence in its various aspects, mythological, historical, social and religious, with precise reference to what concerns the contemporary reality theme. These themes are the essence of the exhibition “Innocenza e Pietas” in 2006 at the Museo della Permanente in Milan. Some of the many awards given to the artist include the prize “Artist Central European” awarded by the Hungarian Ministry of Culture Görgey Gábor in 2002, the prize “Antonello da Messina” the same year in Rome and the “Prix St. Augustine City of Bergamo” in 2004. In 2008, for artistic merit, he was appointed a Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. He has lectured extensively on the issues of modern and contemporary art and he has been the promoter and organizer of conferences and debates.