Design and Art Australia Online

Sculptor modeller who was born in Perugia, Italy in 1908. One school holiday he went to the pottery factory of Gino Ciettia and playing around made a bust of his father. The owner was impressed and wrote a letter of recommendation to a sculptor of note Giuseppe Fraguelli where he studied in 1925. From there he went to the Fine Arts Academy at Perugia for 1926-7 and in 1930-31 was under Pietro Vanucci in his academy.

After graduation he went to work in Rome for another sculptor. In 1938 and 1939 he won awards for sculpture and received many commissions. The Italian government’s percent for art scheme opened opportunities for many artists. He worked on the marble statues of athletes for Mussolini’s Olympic Stadium in Rome, made sets and props for historic films and was employed on a 107-metre statue of Mussolini. War broke out and it was never finished. He made bas-reliefs for the Italian Government for the World Fair in New York in 1939 and the 1942 International Exhibition in Rome. The latter was destroyed by the Nazis and his career went into a decline.

He came to Australia in 1949 and worked as a stonemason in the daytime. He worked as a modeller for Darbyshire Potteries four nights a week from 1952-1959. He modelled most of the Aboriginal sculptures produced by the firm. He was invited to teach clay modelling at Fremantle Technical School in 1958 and when the students discovered he was a sculptor this side of their work increased. He stayed for fifteen years until he retired in 1973. In 1970 he won a competition for a sculpture for Perth’s Commonwealth Centre. This was his last major commission. In 1989 he was invited to exhibit at Fremantle Arts Centre with George Haynes and Roy Churcher. The exhibition brought him late recognition. He said of his work “The idea comes. Then slowly slowly it develops from the subconscious, from the inner part of me.”

Writers:

Erickson, Dorothy (Dr)

Date written:

2011

Last updated:

2011