Florentine artist Paolo Masi dies at 92, known for material transformations
Paolo Masi, a native of Florence born in 1933, passed away in the same city on May 6, 2026, just shy of his 93rd birthday. He embarked on his artistic journey in the 1950s, showcasing his first solo exhibition in 1960 at La Strozzina. During the 1960s, he collaborated with Baldi, Lecci, and Nannucci at Centro F/Uno, delving into post-informal abstraction and Neoconcretism before shifting his focus to Analytical Painting. His work "Rilevamenti esterni-conferme interne" (1974-76) included Polaroid images taken in New York. In 1974, he helped establish the collective space Zona, which transformed into Base in 1998. Masi was featured in the Venice Biennale in 1978, with significant exhibitions such as "Livres d'artistes" (1985) and "Paolo Masi. Opere degli anni Ottanta" (2023).
Key facts
- Paolo Masi died in Florence on May 6, 2026, days before his 93rd birthday
- Born in Florence in 1933
- First solo show at La Strozzina in 1960
- Member of Centro F/Uno with Baldi, Lecci, and Nannucci
- Co-founded Zona in 1974 with Mario Mariotti and Maurizio Nannucci, later Base in 1998
- Participated in Venice Biennale (1978) and Rome Quadriennale (1986)
- Works held in Vienna, Frankfurt, Belgrade, Rivoli, Paris, Florence, Milan
- 2018 solos at Museo MAGA (Gallarate) and Le Murate (Florence)
Entities
Artists
- Paolo Masi
- Mario Mariotti
- Maurizio Nannucci
- Baldi
- Lecci
- Lorenzo Bruni
- Fabio Cavallucci
Institutions
- La Strozzina
- Centro F/Uno
- Zona
- Base
- Biennale di Venezia
- Quadriennale di Roma
- Centre Georges Pompidou
- Palazzo Strozzi
- Palazzo Fabroni
- Museo della Permanente
- Museo MAGA
- Le Murate
- Galleria Frittelli
Locations
- Florence
- Italy
- New York
- Vienna
- Austria
- Frankfurt
- Germany
- Belgrade
- Serbia
- Rivoli
- Paris
- France
- Milan
- Gallarate
- Pistoia