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Bice Lazzari Biography
Beatrice "Bice" Lazzari, born on November 15, 1900, in Venice, Italy, was a pioneering figure in the realm of modernist abstraction, whose artistic journey spanned much of the twentieth century. Her work, characterized by a distinctive minimalist aesthetic and a profound engagement with materials and form, has made a significant contribution to the landscape of Italian art, yet her recognition beyond her native country has been limited until recent years.
Lazzari's early life was steeped in the arts. Born into a middle-class family of merchants and builders, she was initially enrolled at the music conservatory to learn to play an instrument, a common practice for girls of her social standing at the time. However, her artistic inclinations led her to plein air painting through an uncle who was an architect and a distinguished professor. In 1916, she enrolled at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice, where she studied life drawing and decorative art. Her education was interrupted by World War I, which forced her to continue her studies in Florence.
Despite her talent and passion for painting, Lazzari faced societal constraints that limited her opportunities in the fine arts. Women at the time were discouraged from pursuing figurative drawing, particularly in academic settings where nude models were used. Consequently, Lazzari turned her focus to design and applied arts, fields considered more suitable for female artists. She worked with some of the most fashionable architects of the 1930s and 1940s, including Gio Ponti and her brother-in-law, Carlo Scarpa.
Lazzari's artistic output during the 1930s was marked by a dualism of figuration in painting and abstraction in applied art. She moved to Rome in 1935, where she exhibited wall paintings and decorative panels in major exhibitions and collaborated with prominent architects. It was in Rome that she met her future husband, the young Venetian architect Diego Rosa.
The post-war period saw a resurgence in Lazzari's pursuit of painting. Her work from the 1950s exhibited a balance between dynamic movements of color and a rhythmical ordering of compositional elements. However, by the late 1950s, Lazzari began to experiment with new materials such as glue, sand, tempera, and later, acrylics. This experimentation marked a new stage in her career, as she shifted away from traditional mediums and embraced a more abstract and minimalist approach.
Lazzari's work from the 1960s onwards is characterized by a rigorous abstraction, with compositions often featuring lines and marks that create a sense of rhythm and tension within the pictorial space. Her interest in Art Informel, which began in 1957, came to an end by 1963. In 1964, she started her artistic research from scratch, abandoning her usual materials and palette in favor of a simplified means of expression, often applying lines of graphite to a monochrome background.
The series of acrylic paintings executed at the end of the 1960s and into the 1970s testify to the last stage of Lazzari's artistic journey, consolidating her position as a major figure in Italian art. Despite her significant contributions, Lazzari remained a solitary figure, never joining any group or school, and her shyness and introversion contributed to her relative obscurity during her lifetime.
Lazzari's legacy is preserved in the Archive Bice Lazzari in Rome, which houses an important part of her works, writings, poems, and a catalog of all her activities. The archive was declared of considerable historical interest by the Archival Superintendency for Lazio in 1999. Her work has been included in numerous exhibitions posthumously, and her paintings are featured in prestigious collections such as The Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice.
Bice Lazzari passed away on November 13, 1981, in Rome, just two days shy of her 81st birthday. Her work continues to be celebrated and rediscovered, with retrospectives and exhibitions bringing her serene and contemplative abstractions to new audiences, reaffirming her status as a modernist pioneer.
Bice Lazzari Quotes and Sales
of Works
Ponti Art Gallery selects and deals with paintings by the
artist. Upon request, we provide free estimates and
evaluations, communicate prices, quotations, and current
market values.
If you are interested in BUYING or SELLING works by the
artist, contact us immediately.
If you wish to sell or receive an evaluation of the
works:
Send us a frontal photo of the painting, one of the back,
and one of the signature. Also, indicate the dimensions of
the work. Inform us about the purchase origin of the work
and any kind of available documentation (purchase
receipts, certificates of authenticity, publications). One
of our operators will respond to you on the same day. We
guarantee maximum confidentiality and extreme
professionalism.
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