Turi Simeti

Biography

Turi Simeti was born in Alcamo, in the province of Trapani, in 1929.

He left Sicily in '58 and moved to Rome where he began to paint as a self-taught with the production of multi-material works. In the meantime he initiated the first contacts with other artists, in particular with Alberto Burri whose studio he frequented. During these years he stayed for long periods in London, Paris and Basel.

In the early sixties, in harmony with widespread experiences in Italy and abroad tending to the zeroing of the pictorial tradition, Simeti acquires monochrome and relief, consisting of the geometric figure of the ellipse, as the supporting elements of his style that he will never abandon. .

Sharing the researches of that vast movement known under the name of "Programmed Art" and those of "New Trends", Simeti participates with his works in the various reviews that spring from these currents including "Nuova Tendenza 3" in Zagreb in 1965 , the one at the Il Cenobio gallery in Milan, "Arte Programmata - Aktuel 65" and "Weiss auf Weiss" in Bern

In 1965 he was invited to be part of the "Zero Avantgarde" group, which presented itself for the first time in Milan in the atelier of Lucio Fontana. In this year he moved from Rome to Milan.

From '66 to '69 he stayed for long periods in New York, invited as Artist in Residence by Fairleigh Dichinson University.

In the second half of the 1960s he exhibited with solo shows both in Italy and abroad, such as Il Chiodo in Palermo, Giraldi in Livorno, Galerie M in Bochum, Loehr in Frankfurt, Bettina in Zurich.

In 1971, in the middle of a period of protest, Simeti realizes a performance in the Galleria La Bertesca in Genoa with the "Destruction of a glider" of which he keeps the remains in numbered and signed bins.

In the 1970s, in addition to personal exhibitions, Simeti exhibited at major international art fairs: Cologne, Basel, Chicago, Bologna and others, generally presented by foreign galleries.

In 1980 he opens a studio in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil where he spends the winter periods and where personal exhibitions are set up for him, receiving considerable approval.

Simeti's exhibition activity in Italy and abroad continues in the following years. We recall some exhibition venues: Galerie Passmann in Freiburg, Galerie Ahrens in Koblenz, Galerie Apicella in Bonn, Millenium Gallery in Milan, Civic Museum of Gibellina, Kunstverein in Ludwigsburg, Gallery of Modern Art in Gallarate.

Simeti lives and works in Milan

Tags: Turi Simeti - Simeti -oval - Programmed Art - Zero Avantgarde

Contributions:

I have verified that the canvas moves better if moved by an oval rather than a circle. The oval exerts its depression gently and is a bit asymmetrical, the oval is sweet, it is a point of excitement of the surface that comes to life and thickness thanks to the light. Light is as important in my work as shadow. Turi Simeti

Turi Simeti has developed a new aesthetic research on the basis of a protruding architectural apparatus, the entrance of one or more elliptical shapes within the composition, and of monochromatic painting. After a short period of youth under the influence of the informal myth, incidentally common to the artists of his generation including Piero Manzoni, already in 1962 he presented the first ovals (cardboard collage on canvas and shortly after canvas on canvas) which soon evolved in the elliptical element which has become its main distinguishing feature

Turi Simeti - Informale (Informal)

The Informal was born after the Second World War involving both European and American artists. It can be considered the point of convergence of previous artistic experiences such as Cubism. Expressionism and Surrealism. The name itself shows that informal art is a formless art and therefore stands out from both figurative art and abstract art. In fact, figurative art is based on the representation of what is seen, while abstract art is essentially composed of geometric figures. Informal art to develop a work also uses unusual materials, just think of the jute bags and plastics of Burri or the matches of Aubertin. Informal art is also characterized by the use of forms that have a clear three-dimensionality, typically the works of Bonalumi and Castellani,which allow to play both on their distribution on the canvas floor and on the alternation of lights and shadows depending on the incident light. As mentioned, the Informale was a worldwide movement of which the German naturalized French Hans Hartung, the Swiss Schneider, the Zero Group were part; Pollock and De Kooning in the United States, group GUTAI in Japan with, among others, Shozo Shimamoto and Kazuo Shiraga.

Tags: Informal - Aubertin - Bonalumi - Castellani