Ferruccio De Filippi (1943–2025), conceptual artist of Rome's avant-garde, dies at 82

Ferruccio De Filippi, a key figure in Rome's conceptual art scene, has died after a brief illness. Born in Rome in 1943, he debuted in the late 1960s amid the city's vibrant artistic ferment, engaging with philosophical and anthropological thought, particularly Claude Lévi-Strauss. His first solo show, 'Antropologica' (1970), began a long collaboration with gallerist Gian Tommaso Liverani. Notable early works include 'Autoritratto impossibile' (1972) and 'Levitazione' (1971), described by critic Pasquale Polidori as distilling a paradoxical and metaphysical sensibility. In 1977, De Filippi presented 'La strada del latte', a series of over 3,000 drawings on small and medium paper, which Mario Diacono termed 'social-baroque'. This series synthesized space and movement and laid the groundwork for his return to painting in the late 1970s, informed by dreams and Buddhist practice. In the 1990s, he created ceramic sculptures seeking to unite 'the archaic past with the stellar future'. Gallerist Elena del Drago, who worked with him for thirty years, reflects on his legacy. De Filippi's work bridged the conceptual zeroing of painting and its revival, with many pieces still to be discovered.