Lucio FONTANA
Lucio Fontana (1899–1968) was an Italian-Argentine artist and founder of the Spatialism movement. Born in Argentina and later active in Italy, he is best known for his Concetti Spaziali (“Spatial Concepts”), in which he pierced, slashed, or otherwise cut through the canvas to break the traditional picture plane. Fontana’s work sought to merge art, space, and technology, reflecting a postwar fascination with the infinite and the cosmic. His minimalist yet radical approach transformed painting into a three-dimensional object, influencing generations of avant-garde artists.
Painting by Lucio Fontana, from Original Concetto Spaziale
Title: Concetto Spaziale
Artist: Lucio Fontana (Italian, 1899–1968)
Medium: Oil, gold leaf, and perforations on canvas
Dimensions:
Description:
Concetto Spaziale (Spatial Concept), Lucio Fontana transcends the two-dimensional limits of traditional painting. At the heart of the canvas lies a swirling planetary form rendered in lustrous gold, set against a rich, celestial field of blue. True to Fontana’s radical vision, the surface is punctuated by a constellation of deliberate perforations, creating literal and conceptual depth.
Lucio Fontana's Concetto Spaziale works marked a groundbreaking shift in postwar art, merging painting, sculpture, and conceptualism. This piece, with its dynamic textures, tactile incisions, and cosmic overtones, exemplifies Fontana’s revolutionary aim to open the artwork to new dimensions—literally piercing the veil of representation to embrace the void beyond.
Painting on paper by Lucio Fontana, Concetto Spaziale
Title: Concetto Spaziale (Spatial Concept)
Artist: Lucio Fontana (1899–1968)
Medium: Mixed media on paper
Dimensions: [Not specified]
Description:
Artwork by Lucio Fontana featuring a dense interplay of white, black, and red pigments applied with energetic gestures over a layered surface. At the center, a cluster of vibrant red forms pulses within an intricate web of strokes and lines, evoking spatial tension and organic energy. The handwritten inscription "Concetto Spaziale" above the composition anchors the work in Fontana’s broader artistic pursuit of transcending traditional two-dimensional art.
As the founder of Spatialism, Lucio Fontana sought to integrate space, movement, and materiality into a new visual language. This painting is a vivid testament to that vision, merging abstract form and visceral texture to create a sense of depth and rupture.
LUCIO FONTANA - Concetto Spaziale. Signed on each bottom right
Title: Spatial Concepts (Triptych)
Artist: Lucio Fontana (1899–1968)
Medium: Ink on graph paper, mounted in reclaimed wood frame
Dimensions: [Not specified]
Description:
Triptych by Lucio Fontana featuring three abstract ink drawings on graph paper, each exploring a unique spatial rhythm through black geometric forms. The compositions display Fontana’s signature interest in breaking traditional pictorial boundaries, reducing form to raw, symbolic essence. Mounted in a rough-hewn wooden frame.
Lucio Fontana, founder of the Spatialism movement, sought to go beyond the flat surface of the canvas and redefine art through space, light, and gesture. In this rare triptych, Fontana turns to paper to explore spatial energy in two dimensions, creating meditative symbols that appear to pulse with dynamic force.
LUCIO FONTANA - Original Drawing “FERNET BRANCA”. Dated and signed bottom right
Year: 1958
Title: Fernet Branca Study
Artist: Lucio Fontana (1899–1968)
Medium: Pencil on paper
Description:
Original drawing by Lucio Fontana offering a glimpse into the conceptual design process of the artist. Featuring hand-drawn lettering and radiating arrows, the work centers around the words “FERNET BRANCA,” referencing the iconic Italian amaro. The concentric forms and dynamic arrows suggest movement and global reach—possibly a design sketch for an advertisement or poster.
LUCIO FONTANA - Original “Concetto Spaziale”. Dated and signed at the bottom
Artist: Lucio Fontana (1899–1968)
Date: c. 1960s
Medium: Cut paper with black ink
Dimensions:
Collection: Private Collection
Description:
Artwork part of Lucio Fontana’s Concetto Spaziale, Attese series. The piece features a black surface with a grid of precise cuts through the paper. The white background visible through the cuts creates a contrast that emphasizes space and depth.
Lucio Fontana (1899–1968)
Concetto Spaziale, Taglio, 1965
Steel with incision, mounted on base
This minimalist yet striking sculpture by Argentine-Italian artist Lucio Fontana embodies his pioneering Spatialism movement. The work features a single, deliberate incision in a square steel plate, transforming the flat surface into a space of infinite depth. By cutting through the metal, Fontana rejects traditional sculptural volume, instead inviting the viewer to contemplate the void and the space beyond the object itself. The raw, weathered surface contrasts with the clean precision of the slit, reflecting Fontana’s interest in the dialogue between materiality and the metaphysical.
