This volume is published by Gagosian in collaboration with the Piero Manzoni Foundation and created by Flaminio Gualdoni, and appeared for the first time in Italian in 2013, published by Johan & Levi Editore.
The book traces the guiding themes of Manzoni's iconic and experimental body of work through the lens of his rapid and diverse creative development, as well as the artistic partnerships he formed within the Italian and European avant-gardes. Gualdoni says: “Manzoni was a figure of profound intellectual formulations and fulminating insights, who understood from the outset that original artistic practice could only take place against the backdrop of cosmopolitan European culture, and resolved to contribute to that culture in a lucid and decisive manner.”
The biography begins with an in-depth account of Manzoni's personal life and family history, presenting a nuanced and intimate portrait of a young man from Soncino, Italy. The book follows Manzoni's development into a mature artist who immersed himself so deeply in his artistic output that he was able to create a seminal body of work over the course of a single decade that continues to resonate with audiences today, more than fifty years later.
A new book on Manzoni's life is long overdue and promises to renew investigations into the extraordinary work he left behind, especially considering that, as Gualdoni noted, "Manzoni lived art, practiced art, always, every hour, day and night. Nothing else mattered to him or was of even the slightest interest. "
Gualdoni's radical account of the life of an artist who was the physical embodiment of the art he created offers profound insights and makes an essential contribution to the literature of postwar European art.
Flaminio Gualdoni is an art historian and critic. Since 1980 he has taught art history at the Brera Academy of Fine Arts in Milan and during his long career he has directed public and private institutions including the Galleria Civica di Modena, the Civic Museums of Varese and the Arnaldo Pomodoro Foundation. In 2011 with Luca Lampo he created the online Atlas of Italian art.
About the book
Written by Flaminio Gualdoni – Translation by Marguerite Shore and Peter Benson Miller. Published by Gagosian in collaboration with the Piero Manzoni Foundation
Distributed by Rizzoli International Publications
