Ponti Art Gallery is interested in buying and selling works
of art by this artist.
Carol Rama Biography
Carol Rama, born Olga Carolina Rama on April 17, 1918, in Turin, Italy, was a self-taught Italian artist whose work spanned over seven decades, exploring themes of sexuality, eroticism, and the female body with a raw and unapologetic honesty. Her art, often considered ahead of its time, delved into the depths of female sensuality, mental illness, and bodily forms, making her a pivotal figure in the avant-garde movement of the 20th century. Despite facing censorship and marginalization during her lifetime, Rama's work has gained significant recognition posthumously, celebrated for its radical dissidence, formal experimentation, and vibrant oscillation between figuration and abstraction.
Rama's early life was marked by personal and economic upheaval. The youngest daughter of Amabile Rama, a small-scale manufacturer in Turin's bicycle and automobile industry, and his wife, Marta, Carol faced the bankruptcy of her father's company during her childhood. This financial ruin was compounded by personal tragedy when her mother was admitted to a psychiatric clinic in 1933, followed by her father's suicide in 1942. These events deeply influenced Rama's artistic vision, leading her to explore themes of vulnerability, madness, and the body's corporeality.
Rama began her artistic journey around 1933, initially working in watercolor on paper. Her early works were raw and intuitive explorations of the body, both expressionist and psychological in nature. She depicted women without limbs, clinics with restraining beds, and even her nude mother in distressing scenarios, reflecting a consciousness under stress. Rama's work from this period was highly controversial, often featuring erotic and sexually explicit imagery that led to the censorship of her first public exhibition in 1945 at the Galleria Faber in Turin.
Despite the challenges, Rama continued to exhibit her work throughout Italy and formed close friendships with influential figures such as the Italian poet Edoardo Sanguineti and American expatriate Surrealist artist Man Ray. By the 1970s, her work had largely moved toward abstraction, and she began to achieve wider recognition, exhibiting in France, Germany, Sweden, and the United States.
A major reconsideration of Rama's work occurred in the 1980s when Italian critic and curator Lea Vergine included several pieces in an exhibition, prompting Rama to revisit her earlier watercolor style. This new interpretation, accompanied by a broader mainstreaming of self-taught artists, led to international acclaim for Rama, as manifested in several large retrospectives.
Rama's later work featured less-traditional art materials, including nail polish, sandpaper, leather, felt, rubber bicycle tubing, industrial gaskets, and more. Despite the shift in materials, her motivation remained largely the same, as she noted in 1992: "I’m a frightened person. My security only exists in front of a sheet of paper that has to be filled. Work is the only way of getting rid of my fears. My transgression is in painting."
Carol Rama passed away on September 25, 2015, in Turin, Italy, at the age of 97. Her legacy continues to inspire and influence contemporary artists, and her work is celebrated for its independence, eccentricity, and profound impact on the development of both abstraction and figuration in the 20th century. Rama's exploration of the body as a site of intensity, desire, affect, and resistance to normalcy remains a testament to her visionary approach to art.
Carol Rama 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.
If you wish to purchase works by the painter: Contact us
and let us know your request. We will inform you about the
available works. We also offer the possibility to
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informed at the beginning of each month about the latest
acquisitions of the art gallery.
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