Sicilian artist Bruno Caruso dies at 91, remembered for asylum drawings and political works

Bruno Caruso, a painter from Sicily, was born in Palermo in 1927 and passed away on November 4, 2018. He gained fame for his 'Manicomio' series, produced between 1953 and 1956 at the Pisani Psychiatric Hospital, which was published in 1969 with a preface by psychiatrist Franco Basaglia, just three years prior to Italy's Law 180. His artwork shed light on the suffering of inmates and the violence within institutions. Caruso also took a stand against the Mafia and social inequality, famously illustrating boss Luciano Liggio alongside politicians in a 1970 drawing for L'Ora, leading to legal challenges. Influenced by Goya and Klimt, he had a distinctive figurative style and collaborated with L'Ora and l'Unità, founding 'Sicilia' in 1953, earning admiration from writers like Leonardo Sciascia.