Alberto Bertoldi

Clouds

Alberto Bertoldi

Clouds

Alberto Bertoldi

Clouds, a series of paintings

Alberto Bertoldi was born on the 29th of November in the late autumn of 1955 in Luserna San Giovanni - a town in the mountainous province of Turin, Northern Italy. The rugged terrain of the area in which Bertoldi spent his childhood had a profound effect on him – it triggered his sensibility for nature and captured his imagination. Aged just fourteen, a vinyl record cover depicting an endless American plain with a road vanishing in to the distance inspired him to put brush to canvas in an attempt to recreate this sense of immense vastness and his obses-sion with painting started.

He began to explore these emotions through vibrant landscape paintings, encour-aged by a meeting with surrealist artist Leone Garriano (1931 – 2008) whose artworks are deeply rooted in the classical landscape tradition so ingrained in the Italian art historical cannon. In 1973, Bertoldi prepared his first solo exhibition, during a period of extraordinary curiosity and experimentation.

He made regular visits to the studio of the artist Cinello Losi (1928) and under the guidance of professor Gino Moro from the Brera Academy he attended the Nude School to develop his artistic skills. He spent the next decade devoting himself to the refinement of his technique and expressing of his ideas, whilst embarking on a tour of Europe to study the great Classical artists. “Dal surrealismo indietro uno dei primi libri che mi regalai fu il famoso Le surrealisme e la painture, poi, quando ho potuto, ho cominciato vedere in concreto, anche fuori dall’italia, i quadri che avevo amato tanto; ti dirò che è stata un’esperienza strana vedere in concreto tanti quadri che conoscevo così bene”. “Going back in time, one of the first books I bought was the famous Le surrealism et le peinture. It was an extraor-dinary experience – when I started to travel, to see in the flesh around the world, those paintings I knew so well and had loved so much”. He was fascinated by El Greco, Hieronymous Bosch and the Flemish, English and German Classical land-scape masters, who inspired him to capture the ethereal presence of life in nature through contemporary painting.

In the early nineties Bertoldi opened a new studio space in Piacenza and began a collaboration with the Braga Art Gallery. His visual language became clear, defined and recognisable, as his landscapes began to look further towards their skies. In 1996 he opened a large solo exhibition focusing on these plein air works, with a catalogue edited by the art historian Stefano Fugazza. Around this time, Bertoldi had encounters with the gallery owner Igino Consigli and the famous art historian Federico Zeri whom both greatly encouraged his research and practice. It became clear during this period to Bertoldi, that the clouds were the real protagonists of

his pictures – the sky-scapes look mighty as if they are ethereal guardians of some-thing powerful and sacred. Over the next few years, Bertoldi had several import-ant solo shows, winning awards including the Purchase Award and Solo-Artist Exhibition Award at the Forni Gallery in Bologna. An extensive catalogue of his work was published by the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Piacenza, featuring poetic accompaniments to the paintings written by his friend Maurizio Agnellini. In 2000, his works were selected to be exhibited at the Society Redaktionfest in Vienna and a catalogue of his works entitled “The Impossible Everywhere”, edited by the curator Flavio Arensi was released to accompany a grand exhibition at the Bugno Gallery.

Bertoldi’s reputation quickly spread, with major exhibitions and catalogues, curated and edited by prominent art world figures including; Domenico Montalto, Agostino De Rossa Alberto Agazzano and Giorgio Soavi. He also presented a series of touring lectures, culminating in a presentation at the IUAV University in Venice and collaborated with the Art’é auction house and their artist promotions organisation for several years on major works.

In 2006 a retrospective of his work was held at the Museo di Villa Breda in Padua, with a catalogue containing texts by art historians and curators including; Ruggero Pierantoni, Luca Mercalli, Gherardo degli Azzoni Avogardo, Maurizio Agnelli, with poetry by Ala Merini and edited by Beatrice Buscaroli. His reputation spread across the continent with more important solo shows in Italy, and further afield in group shows at the Artery Gallery in Edinburgh, the Hermitage Gallery in Dallas, Texas and Galerie de l’Europe in Paris. In 2007 he staged an important exhibi-tion in the veritable Museo di Luzzarra in Reggio Emilia with an accompanying catalogue.

In 2011 he exhibited at the Venice Biennale, supervised by the famous Italian art critic Vittorio Sgarbi. He continues to regularly exhibit in his home country where his reputation has become that of an eminent painter who represents the strong heritage of Italian painting. “Il mio “sforzo inconscio”, che posso ben rico-noscere guardando a ritroso, è  quello di fare una pittura contemporanea (e i miei lavori credo siano  assolutamente contemporanei),  ma radicata nella tradizione, senza volerlo, ho fatto mio un motto che è anche il titolo di un famoso libro di psicologia “senza radici non si vola”. “I make contemporary art with a sort of ‘unconscious impulse’ (I believe my paintings are without doubt contemporary), well rooted in tradition. I have spontaneously created my motto, which is also the title of a famous psychology book Without roots you don’t fly”.

Solo Shows:2014 Galleria Sala – Piacenza

2013 Galleria Libreria Einaudi – Mantua Arte Fiera – Piacenza Galleria delle Visioni – Piacenza

2012 Galleria delle Visioni – Piacenza Galleria La Pietra – Martina Franca (TA) Arte Fiera – Genoa

2011 Galleria de L’Europe “Peintures” – Paris Arte Fiera – Padua Arte Fiera - Parma

2010 Galleria Libreria Einaudi “Segni dal Cielo” – Mantua

2007 Fondazione Un Paese Museo – Luzzara (RE) Castello di Sartirana – Pavia

2006 Casa d’Arte al teatro – Piacenza Museo Villa Breda – Padua (Anthology) Castello di Belgioioso – Pavia Castello di Gorizia – Gorizia Great Art Fair at Alexandra Palace – London

2005 Palazzo Emiciclo (Convegno Meteolive) – L’Aquila

Libreria Sovilla – Cortina (BL)

2004 Fine Art Exhibition – Milan Fine Art Exhibition – Daegu (South Korea)

2003 Chiesa di Sant’Angelo – Piacenza Innesti Contemporanei –Milan

2002 Galleria Fogliato – Turin Libreria Bocca – Milan

2001 Galleria Braga – Piacenza Libreria Sovilla – Cortina (BL) MCArt2001 – Monte Carlo

2000 Bugno Art Gallery – Venice Society Redaktionfest – Vienna (A) with

Ernst Fuchs Galleria Le Muse – Andria Bari Arte Reggio 2000 – Reggio Emilia

1999 Galleria La Panchetta – Bari Galleria Biale e Ceruti – Sienna Etruriaarte – Venturina Livorno Galeria Quest’Arte – Mirano (VE) Galeria Forni – Bologna

1998 Galleria-Libreria Einaudi – Mantua Galleria Braga – Piacenza

1997 Associazione Culturale Arte Moderna – Ferrara Etruriaarte – Venturina (LI) Galerie Zur.Hofstatt – Basel

Group Shows: 2012 LIV Venice Biennale – Sez. Region of Parma Apocolpise, Palazza della Regione – Milan

2011 Finis Valtellinae – Sondrio

2009 Il Mito del Vero – Milan

2008 Il Vuoto del e le Forme – Chiavenna (SO)

2007 Rassegna internazionale città di Bozzolo – Bozzolo (MN)

2005 Quindici-quindici, Galleria Ricci Oddi – Piacenza (Collective)

2002 Piccolo Museo Hoffler – Madonna di Campiglio (NT)

2001 Palazzo Rasini – Cavenago di Brianza (MI)

Paintings

Sconosciuto, 2015

Oil on canvas

55 x 70 cm

C’eri Ci sarai, 2015

Oil on canvas

40 x 35 cm

Frammento, 2015

Oil on panel

35 x 40 cm

Gli enigmi del tempo, diptych, 2015

Oil on canvas

120 x 100 cm each

Verso sud, 2015

Oil on canvas

100 x 100 cm

Oltre la cortina, 2015

Oil on canvas

60 x 55 cm

Disvelato, 2015

Oil on canvas

45 x 60 cm

L’imminente, 2015

Oil on canvas

70 x 60 cm

Cercando la leggerezza, 2015

Oil on canvas

70 x 100 cm

Isante 01, 2015

Oil on panel

35 x 25 cm

Isante 02, 2015

Oil on panel

35 x 25 cm

Sogno d’estate, 2015

Oil on canvas

100 x 120 cm

Insonne presenza, 2015

Oil on canvas

70 x 90 cm

Auspicio di notte, 2015

Oil on canvas

40 x 30 cm

Auspicio della notte, 2015

Oil on canvas

40 x 30 cm

Lorizzonte apparente, 2015

Oil on canvas

40 x 60 cm

Intenzione, 2015

Oil on canvas

50 x 40 cm

É, sarà luce, 2015

Oil on canvas

50 x 40 cm

L’ostacolo dissolto, 2015

Oil on canvas

60 x 70 cm

This catalogue was produced to coincide with the exhibition of Alberto Bertoldi’s Clouds,

a series of paintings at Moatti Masters|Contemporary,

from the 24 September – 30 October 2015.

All works are for sale.

Moatti Masters|Contemporary would like to thank Marco Gambino for making the show possible. We would also like to thank Harry Seymour and

Cecilia Giuseppetti.

© Copyright Moatti Masters|Contemporary

Published by Moatti Masters|Contemporary, 2015, all rights reserved.

Edited by Harry SeymourNo part of the publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without permission from the copyright holder.

ISBN: 978-0-9933819-0-4

Moatti Masters|Contemporary23 Mount Street, London, W1K 2RP

United Kingdom+44 (0)20 7409 3591

info@moatti.co.uk | www.moatti.co.uk

Alberto Bertoldi’s Clouds, a Series of Paintings M

oatti Masters|C

ontemporary