Giuseppe Desiato, Italian body art pioneer, dies at 89

Giuseppe Desiato, a pioneering Italian body artist known for his subversive performances that often involved creating works only to destroy or bury them, died on July 28, 2024, in Naples at age 89. Born in Naples in 1935, Desiato remained deeply tied to his city throughout his life. His transgressive performative practice included making small sculptures from veils, flowers, or images of women's faces, which he would then destroy or bury. Among his most famous performances was one in Basel in 1974, where he involved Fluxus artist Charlotte Moorman, stripping her and covering her with veils, lights, and flowers, in front of Vienna Actionism founder Hermann Nitsch. Despite his rejection of the art market, numerous gallerists and critics engaged with his work from the 1970s onward: he was included in Lea Vergine's seminal body art book "Il corpo come linguaggio," had a solo show at Studio Morra in Naples in 1984, and was the subject of a major retrospective at the 7th Manifesta in Trento in 2008, accompanied by an anthology volume presented by Gillo Dorfles. His son Paco Desiato announced the death via Facebook. Desiato's work was extensively documented through photography, capturing his ironic and dreamlike performances.