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女[ONNA]

ALAIN BONNEFOIT  |  SUMI-E | PAINTING | SCULPTURE
PAOLA BILLI & NICOLA PICCIOLI  |  ORIENTAL CALLIGRAPHY

9 APRIL – 5 JULY 2018  |  MAIN EXHIBITION
Pignano Art Gallery, Borgo Pignano | Loc. Pignano, 6 | Volterra

24 MAY – 1 JULY 2018  |  INSTALLATION
Sala del Giudice Conciliatore, Palazzo dei Priori | Piazza dei Priori | Volterra

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Borgo Pignano, Vitalità Cultural Association and Comune di Volterra present an art exhibition dedicated to the feminine principle, the generating and cyclical energy of the natural world, the meditative and introspective aspects of the approach to art.

女 – [Onna], the pictograph character defining woman in the East, is a dialogue on the theme of the feminine, co-joining the West to the oriental philosophies and aesthetics of the East. An artistic exhibition dedicated to femininity: as the source of contemplation, as the creative power inspiring painting and sculpture and the elegant calligraphy of contemporary masters of the art.

Pignano Art Gallery, is honoured to host the works of Alain Bonnefoit and to exhibit his oil paintings dedicated to the veneration and inspiration of the harmonious and charming female body. The distinctive oriental flavour of the sumi-e works of this French painter and sculptor converses with the elegant and energetic calligraphy of the masters Paola Billi and Nicola Piccioli.

On large format sheets of fine Chinese paper calligraphers of the Florentine Association, FeiMo, gather the lines of ancient Chinese poems celebrating the Taoist philosophy of the Feminine Principle as the element fundamental to generativity. This ancient and noble art is supported by other calligraphic works in Latin characters and calligraphic style paintings.

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Borgo Pignano, Vitalità Associazione Culturale e Comune di Volterra presentano un’esposizione dedicata al principio femminile, all’energia ciclica e generatrice del mondo naturale, all’aspetto meditativo ed introspettivo dell’approccio alle arti.

女 – [Onna], il carattere che indica la donna in oriente, è un dialogo sul tema del femminile che interconnette le filosofie e l’estetica orientali all’occidente, un’esposizione artistica dedicata alla femminilità, intesa come fonte di contemplazione, come forza creativa ispiratrice di dipinti, sculture ed eleganti calligrafie di maestri contemporanei.

La Pignano Art Gallery, è onorata di ospitare le opere del Maestro Alain Bonnefoit, di esporre i suoi olii dedicati all’armoniosa e seducente forma corporea femminile, spazio di venerazione ed ispirazione. Il distintivo tratto orientale delle opere sumi-e del pittore e scultore francese dialoga con le eleganti ed energiche calligrafie dei Maestri Paola Billi e Nicola Piccioli.

Grandi formati di pregiata carta cinese raccolgono i tratti dei Maestri dell’Associazione fiorentina Feimo, antiche poesie cinesi evocano filosofie taoiste sul principio femminile e lo rieleggono elemento generatore fondamentale, altre opere calligrafiche interconnettono questa antica e nobile arte orientale a caratteri latini e dipinti in stile calligrafico.

 

ALAIN BONNEFOIT  SUMI-E | PAINTING | SCULPTURE

Painter, engraver and sculptor, Alain Bonnefoit was born in Montmartre, Paris, in 1937. From 1953 he attended the École des Arts Appliqués, from 1956 the École des Beaux Arts in Paris and from 1959 also the École des Beaux Arts in Brussels. In 1961 he began a two year period in the studio of the sculptor Volti who would become his maestro in both art and life. In 1964 he arrived at the form of expression that later made him famous: the female nude. In 1965 he moved to Tuscany but kept on his studio in Paris. In 1973 he made his first trip to Japan, an experience that affected him deeply, where he discovered and studied the technique of sumi-e. He made repeated visits to the East for further in-depth study and is now a master of the technique. In his forty year career Bonnefoit has experimented with the most varied means of expression: mixed techniques on canvas paper, oil painting, original lithography and engraving, his elegant sumi-e and sculpture. The real artistic explosion began in the early 90’s with requests for solo exhibitions increasing rapidly, together with critical and public success and outstanding shows throughout the world. His works have been acquired by public bodies in Japan, Korea and France. He lives between France and Italy which he now considers his second country.

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Pittore, incisore e scultore, Alain Bonnefoit nasce a Parigi, nel quartiere di Montmartre, nel 1937. Dal 1953 frequenta l’École des Arts Appliqués e dal 1956 l’École des Beaux Arts di Parigi poi, dal 1959, anche l’École des Beaux Arts di Bruxelles. Dal 1961 pratica per due anni lo studio dello scultore Volti, che diventerà suo maestro d’arte e di vita. Nel 1964 approda alla forma d’espressione che lo ha poi reso famoso, il nudo femminile.

Nel 1965 si trasferisce in Toscana, pur mantenendo il proprio studio di Parigi.Il suo primo viaggio in Giappone avviene nel 1973: un’esperienza che lo segna profondamente. Lì scopre e studia la tecnica del sumi-e che approfondisce tornando spesso in Oriente e di cui oggi è maestro. Dagli inizi degli anni Novanta la vera esplosione artistica: le richieste di mostre personali si moltiplicano rapidamente, così come il successo di critica e di pubblico. Rilevanti le mostre di Tokyo, Roma, Parigi, Los Angeles, Firenze, New York. Sue opere si trovano in strutture pubbliche giapponesi, coreane e francesi. Attualmente continua a vivere tra la Francia e l’Italia, che ormai considera come una seconda patria.

 

PAOLA BILLI & NICOLA PICCIOLI    ORIENTAL CALLIGRAPHY

Designer and Master of Chinese Calligraphy, PAOLA BILLI 西子 lives and works in Italy. Since 2001 she has exhibited internationally and participated in workshops, conferences and conventions on calligraphy through the world. In 2011 she was nominated as Vice President of the International Association of Calligraphy of Beijing and President of the Italian branch. In 2011 she collaborated with the Chinese State Television Company (CCTV), representing Europe in a program of eight episodes “5000 Years of Chinese Calligraphy”. She won the special prize of the jury in Korea at the Biennale of Calligraphy of Jeollabukdo. She was invited to represent Italy in 2008 at the eighth International Calligraphy Exchange Exhibition to celebrate the opening of the Olympic Games of Beijing. Her calligraphy over the last ten years has been acquired by collectors, museums and especially in 2013, by the Museum of Calligraphy of Chengdu.

NICOLA PICCIOLI火云is an authority and artist recognised internationally. Individually and as the leader of the artistic trend, he is periodically invited to prestigious exhibitions of calligraphy, classical and contemporary, in China, Korea, Japan, America and Europe. The Master, together with the calligrapher Paola Billi, founded the FeiMo Cultural Association. By means of dedicated teaching in collaboration with international schools and institutions, FeiMo Cultural Association has set out to popularise the knowledge and practice of Chinese Calligraphy, the primary art of the Far East. Spread throughout the countries of eastern Asia, Chinese calligraphy, like music, is a universal language of artistic expression which offers the means to shape creativity across the frontiers of time and space, permitting an appreciation from the inside of the culture and how it has developed.

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Designer e Maestra di calligrafia cinese, PAOLA BILLI 西子 vive e lavora in Italia. Dal 2001 espone e partecipa come artista e relatrice inviata a mostre internazionali, workshop, convegni e conferenze sulla calligrafia in tutto il mondo. Nel 2011 ė stata nominata Vice Presidente dell’Associazione Internazionale dei Calligrafi di Pechino e Presidente della sede Italiana della stessa Associazione. Nel 2011 ha collaborato con la TV di Stato Cinese (CCTV), in rappresentanza dell’Europa, nel programma in otto puntate “5000 Anni di Calligrafia Cinese”. Sue calligrafie sono state acquisite nel corso degli ultimi dieci anni, da collezionisti, musei e in particolare nel 2013, dal Museo della Calligrafia dell’UNESCO di Chengdu. Nel 2017, in occasione dell’ International Contemporary Art Fair, Sanya, China, ha ricevuto il premio “Art Practice Award”.

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EXHIBITION:

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INFORMATION:

女[ONNA]
ALAIN BONNEFOIT   SUMI-E | PAINTING | SCULPTURE
PAOLA BILLI & NICOLA PICCIOLI  ORIENTAL CALLIGRAPHY

24 MAY – 1 JULY 2018  INSTALLATION
Sala del Giudice Conciliatore, Palazzo dei Priori | Piazza dei Priori | Volterra (PI), Italy

Information and appointments:
Nous Art Gallery
Via Cellolese, 3/d (Piazza Sant’Agostino)  |  San Gimignano (SI), Italy
+39.345.158.1209