Journeys into the Art and Spirit of Different Cultures
This exhibition presents two sides of the Scottish-Italian artist Antonio Pacitti (1924-2009), celebrated by the global Charter for Compassion for his contribution to our understanding of war. A prolific painter, sculptor and potter, the Cassino-born artist returned repeatedly to nature in its various moods, and to the depiction of injustice and oppression. The drawings from the Guantanamo series, described by Harold Pinter as ‘deeply impressive and very important’, express his anger at the human tendency to dehumanize those who are perceived as enemies. In contrast, Pacitti’s sheer joy in life is shown in the vibrant colours and energetic brushstrokes of his canvases painted direct from nature. Pacitti’s oeuvre drew admiration from critics and fellow artists, such as Craigie Aitchison, who wrote that no other artist painted with so much love, brightness and enthusiasm. (The Guardian)
Antonio Pacitti (1924 – 2009)
Antonio Pacitti was born in Cassino in Italy. When he was almost four, the family fled to Glasgow when his socialist father received a decree of exile. After growing up in severe poverty, he attended the Glasgow School of Art and the Slade. His fascinating family history can be seen on Edinburgh University’s website in the Italo Scots Research Cluster archive of photographs.
Pacitti’s art was a constant process of experimentation embracing different styles, media and subjects. The British Museum Collection holds one of his drawings, and his ceramics have been auctioned at Bonham’s and Christie’s and exhibited at Pallant House Gallery. He was commissioned to sculpt a Mother and Child at the Church of St. Thomas More, Patcham. Solo exhibitions include Paintings, Drawings and Ceramics at the Accademia Italiana (1993) and a series of cathedral exhibitions (2000 –2002). Pacitti was an invited artist at the Malta Biennale in 1999, and received the award for Graphics and Watercolours.
Pacitti’s paintings of blossoming trees and flowers belong to a period of his life when there was a sense of liberation and new beginnings, reflected in the vibrancy of the colours and sheer energy of the brush-strokes. They were painted direct from nature, with the artist working rapidly to capture his vision as the light shifted and the blossom itself unfolded and changed.
Late in life, Pacitti’s anger at the detention camp at Guantanamo resulted in a series of drawings which, together with poems by his wife Diane Pacitti, appeared in the publication Guantanamo, which was described by Harold Pinter as ‘deeply impressive and very important’. He also produced a series of political monotypes. After his death, the global Charter for Compassion has featured Pacitti’s art and life within an international listing of writers and artists who have contributed to our understanding of war.
Diane Pacitti is keeping a collection of her husband’s art for spiritual and communal projects. In an Occupied Land, a recent exhibition in Glasgow University Memorial Chapel, was an item on the BBC Scotland News. A two-phase exhibition in Bradford Cathedral will start in February 2015.
The Journeys exhibition presents two sides of the artist: his joyous response to life and his anger at the human tendency to incarcerate and degrade those who are perceived as enemies. He would have been delighted to be part of Journeys, an event which celebrates the encounter between different cultures.