(Rome 1900–1972)
Domenica d’estate-Superficie 10, 1953, signed and dated; signed, titled and dated on the reverse, oil on canvas, 73 x 60 cm, framed

This work is registered in the Archivio Capogrossi, Rome and is accompanied by a photo certificate of authenticity issued by Guglielmo Capogrossi

"My ambition is to help people see what their eyes do not perceive: an angle onto the space in which their opinions and actions are born".

Giuseppe Capogrossi’s (1900-1972) distinctive style is presented here in a work from the 'Superfi ci' series. Capogrossi adopted an Informalist style of painting, characterised by a single elementary and extremely communicative sign which became the leitmotif of his works from the post-war period onwards, and which in turn would revolutionise his way of making art.

A fork, trident, or comb - or however anyone contemplating his works wishes to defi ne it - is the matrix that makes Capogrossi's strokes totally personal: monogrammatic divertissement (Pier Giorgio Pasini), sign language freely repeated on ever-changing colour fi elds, respecting the concept of expressive simplifi cation which lies at the heart of the "Gruppo Origine" he founded in 1950 with Alberto Burri, Mario Ballocco and Ettore Colla. It is worth noting that Capogrossi's works are never completely fi nished, but that the artist would often return to his works after a period of time to modify, add to and retouch them.

“Surperfi cie 10”, like all the other works in this series, hinges on a geometric and yet random mass of black signs whose contours are completely eliminated, embracing two-dimensional colour fields.
The rejection of the three-dimensional form, the reduction of colour to its most essential but incisive, and the exaltation of pure and elementary graphic elements are the cornerstones of Giuseppe Capogrossi's art, which are more than consistent with the core concepts of the Gruppo Origine: rigour, anti-intellectualism, anti-decoratism and the absence of expressive character."

Provenance:
Cesare Tosi Collection, Milan
Galleria Seno, Milan (label on the reverse)
Attilio Biasutti Collection (certificate of provenance available and label on the reverse)
European Private Collection

Exhibited:
Venice, Personal exhibition Giuseppe Capogrossi, XXVII Biennale, 1954, exh. cat. no. 6 (label on the reverse)
Paris, Capogrossi, Galerie Rive Gauche, 28 June - 25 July 1956, exh. cat. with ill.
London, Capogrossi, I. C. A. Institute of Contemporary Art,1957, exh. cat. no. 1 (label on the reverse)
Milan, Omaggio a Cardazzo, Galleria del Naviglio, 1969 (label on the reverse)

Literature:
G. Giani, Spazialismo. Origini e sviluppi di una tendenza artistica, Edizioni Conchiglia, Milan 1956, no. 16 with ill.
B. Zevi (ed.), L’architettura. Cronache e storia, 20 June 1957, p. 132 with ill.
M. Lelj, Il tallone d’Achille, in “Le Arti. Mensile di cultura e attualità”, no. 6-7, July-August 1958, with ill.
M. Tapié, Capogrossi, Edizioni del Cavallino, Venice 1962, no. IV
Panorama delle Arti, no. 3, April-May 1962, cover ill.
AA. VV., Universo, Enciclopedia De Agostini, no. 220, 10 April 1973, no. 204 cover ill.
G. C. Argan, Capogrossi, Editalia, Rome 1967, p. 149 no. 109 with ill.
P. R. Ferraris, R. C. Pittorino, Capogrossi, I segni del secolo, catalogue of the exhibition held at Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna, 19 December 1999 – 19 March 2000, Allemandi 1999
Capogrossi. Una retrospettiva, catalogue of the exhibition held at Peggy Guggenheim, Venice, Marsilio Editori 2012, p. 336

Note:
The present work is reproduced in the series of colour postcards edited by Galleria del Cavallino, Venice. See postcard no. 59 illustrated in the catalogue Venice, Marsilio Editori 2012