Nunzio

1954, Cagnano Amiterno (AQ), Italy

Nunzio Di Stefano, known simply as Nunzio, is one of the leading figures in contemporary Italian sculpture. Trained at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Rome under Toti Scialoja, his work focuses on the interaction between matter, light and space, favouring materials such as charred wood, lead, plaster and iron. He made his debut in the 1980s in dialogue with the artists of the Scuola di San Lorenzo, including Marco Tirelli, Dessì, Pizzi Cannella and Bianchi.

Nunzio's poetics is expressed through essential, monumental forms, suspended between rigour and lyricism. His works, always untitled, evoke inner architectures, thresholds and memories etched into matter. A personal friend of Stefano Rastrelli, Nunzio is present in the collection with significant works that testify to the expressive strength of a language as austere as it is evocative.

Nunzio

Untitled, 2012
Lead and charred wood, cm 97 × 91 × 4

In this 2012 sculpture, Nunzio builds a subtle balance between gravity and suspension. The lead, heavy and opaque, bends into sharp curves that seem to open passages within the matter, while the charred wood, black and deep, heightens the sense of silence and reflection.

The surfaces, seemingly simple, reveal in the light a layering of planes and shadows that turn the work into a kind of secular icon, where time and matter converse in silence. The bent geometry is not rigid but breathes, as if holding within itself the memory of fire and transformation. A work that invites us to listen to space, to respect the void, to contemplate.