
Marcello Mariani
Forma Archetipa, 2013

Born in Italy in 1938, painter Marcello Mariani was greatly influenced by New York City’s booming Post-War art scene, which notably included the Abstract Expressionists. Mariani also took on a great deal of inspiration from European artists like Piet Mondrian, Josef Albers and Hans Hofmann, whose work, which often focused on theories regarding the relationship between colors, are a clear influence for Mariani. In the ‘60s, Robert Rauschenberg—who was spending time in Rome—helped form Mariani’s ideas surrounding the potential of abstraction, and a 1974 collaboration with the artist Joseph Beuys pushed the conceptual rigor of his work. Studio Mariani Gallery in L'aquila, Italy—about 75 miles east of Rome—is an art space designed by Mariani which began unofficially in the ‘70s and ‘80s when Mariani would reserve space in his studio to display the work of his friends and fellow artists. Studio Mariani Gallery remains an active exhibition space today.


Born in Italy in 1938, painter Marcello Mariani was greatly influenced by New York City’s booming Post-War art scene, which notably included the Abstract Expressionists. Mariani also took on a great deal of inspiration from European artists like Piet Mondrian, Josef Albers and Hans Hofmann, whose work, which often focused on theories regarding the relationship between colors, are a clear influence for Mariani. In the ‘60s, Robert Rauschenberg—who was spending time in Rome—helped form Mariani’s ideas surrounding the potential of abstraction, and a 1974 collaboration with the artist Joseph Beuys pushed the conceptual rigor of his work. Studio Mariani Gallery in L'aquila, Italy—about 75 miles east of Rome—is an art space designed by Mariani which began unofficially in the ‘70s and ‘80s when Mariani would reserve space in his studio to display the work of his friends and fellow artists. Studio Mariani Gallery remains an active exhibition space today.