Lorenzato

About

Comprised of paintings made between 1973 and 1993, this exhibition marks his first solo presentation in the United States. Drawn to the natural world and symbols of daily life, Lorenzato depicted landscapes, still lives, and scenes from his neighborhood. His aim was not to reproduce his environment, but to translate it through a simplified vision of reduced geometric forms utilizing rich handmade paints and defined brush strokes. 

Born in 1900 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil to Italian immigrants, Lorenzato’s experience was that of displacement. At age 20, he and his family relocated back to Italy where he worked various construction jobs and restored frescoes, as well as extensively traveling throughout Europe. It was during his travels that he immersed himself in making work, painting small gouaches that he would sell in order to sustain himself, and was exposed to museums and the works of Matisse and Picasso. In 1948, Lorenzato returned to Brazil and continued to work in civil construction and as a mural painter. Eight years later he sustained a severe leg injury which consequently at the age of 56 allowed him to dedicate himself exclusively to painting until his death in 1995.