Turi Simeti on His Oval Motif and Artistic Journey in a 2014 Interview
In a 2014 conversation with Alberto Fiz, Turi Simeti, the Italian artist, recounted the origin of his oval design, which began in 1961 after he burned the corners of rectangular shapes, inspired by Alberto Burri. The first instance of the oval appeared in collages made from charred yellow envelopes. By 1962, this shape became his central element, with one artwork featuring 414 ovals. Although he briefly toyed with circles and rectangles, he deemed them unharmonious. Simeti shifted to optical paintings from 1963 to 1964 and adhered ovals onto canvas in 1965. After moving to Milan in 1966, following encounters with artists at the Zero exhibition, he began crafting estroflessioni in 1967. He held over thirty exhibitions in Germany and spent half the year in New York. His debut piece was purchased by Domenico Modugno. This interview appeared in "Turi Simeti Unlimited."
Key facts
- Turi Simeti's oval motif originated in 1961 from burning corners of rectangular forms with a candle.
- Influenced by Alberto Burri, Simeti began with burnt yellow commercial envelopes on canvas.
- A 1962 work in the Bergisch Gladbach museum collection contains 414 ovals.
- Simeti briefly used circles from 1989 to 1992 but returned to the oval.
- He created estroflessioni (extrusions) from 1967 onward, embedding ovals into the canvas.
- Simeti moved to Milan in 1966 after the Zero avantgarde exhibition at Fontana's studio in 1965.
- He shared a studio in Sesto San Giovanni with Castellani and Bonalumi.
- Simeti had over thirty exhibitions in Germany and sold works there when the Italian market was weak.
- In 1968, he held a private show in New York curated by Willoughby Sharp, attended by Christo, Hockney, and Jenkins.
- Meeting Alberto Burri in 1959 inspired Simeti to become an artist.
- Fontana bought a small blue canvas from Simeti's 1966 solo show at Galleria Vismara.
- The interview was published in the catalog 'Turi Simeti Unlimited' (Silvana Editoriale) for his show at Galleria Luca Tommasi.
Entities
Artists
- Turi Simeti
- Alberto Burri
- Lucio Fontana
- Piero Manzoni
- Enrico Castellani
- Dadamaino
- Agostino Bonalumi
- Yves Klein
- Yayoi Kusama
- Heinz Mack
- Jesús Rafael Soto
- Günther Uecker
- Paolo Scheggi
- Christo
- David Hockney
- Paul Jenkins
- Domenico Modugno
- Nanda Vigo
- Willoughby Sharp
- Tom Migliore
- Alberto Fiz
Institutions
- Galleria Vismara
- Galleria Wulfengasse
- Galleria M Bochum
- Galleria Luca Tommasi
- Silvana Editoriale
- Museum Bergisch Gladbach
- Artribune
Locations
- Milan
- Italy
- Rome
- Sicily
- Sesto San Giovanni
- New York
- United States
- Germany
- Austria
- Klagenfurt
- Bochum
- Bergisch Gladbach