Painter Ruggero Savinio, Grandson of Giorgio de Chirico, Dies at 90

Ruggero Savinio, the Italian painter and grandson of Giorgio de Chirico, died on January 1, 2025, at age 90. Born in Turin on December 22, 1934, he was the son of Alberto Savinio (Andrea Francesco Alberto de Chirico) and actress Maria Morino. He grew up in Rome's cultural milieu alongside his father and uncle, then studied literature and philosophy at La Sapienza University. After travels to Paris, Milan, Switzerland, and Tuscany, he returned to Rome in 1984. His career highlights include the Peggy Guggenheim Prize (1986), the De Sica Prize (2007), membership in the Accademia di San Luca (1995), participation in the 1995 Venice Biennale, a 2012 retrospective at the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna in Rome, and the 2022 exhibition "Ruggero Savinio. Opere 1959 – 2022" at Palazzo Reale in Milan. Savinio described his figurative painting as influenced by Edvard Munch, Arnold Böcklin, Francis Bacon, and Hans von Marées, emphasizing physicality over conceptualism.