Emilio Vedova Di Umano, 1983

Italian artist, Emilio Vedova pushed painting into new territories with his visceral and gestural works that engage the viewer and redefine the space they inhabit. His expressive strokes and smears of paint convey a raw and violent reaction to the political reality of the post-war period. The 1980s are widely recognized as the acme of Vedova’s career, the works of this period are marked by their colourful palette and monumentality. In 1980, he travelled to Mexico, where the colours and immense landscapes left a lasting impression on him. The smears of black, yellow and brown in Di Umano (1983) energise the pictorial plane and enhance its emotional force.