Mimmo Rotella (1918-2006) was an Italian artist and leading figure of post-war European art. He is best known for creating layered collage-like works from torn film and advertising posters.
Although Rotella began his artistic career as a geometric abstract painter, he eventually joined the Nouveau Réalisme (New Realism) movement (founded by Yves Klein) and turned to the world around him for inspiration.
Rotella found his muse clinging to the weathered walls of Rome. He would define his signature aesthetic by finding and transforming torn posters into art. After tearing the eroded posters from public walls, he would affix them to canvases and further tear, modify, and paint them into semi-abstract compositions. From images of pop culture and mass media Rotella created these "double décollages".
Marilyn Monroe is one of the most iconic and recognizable figures of the twentieth century. She amplified and embodied what it meant to be a glamorous Hollywood star and sex symbol more than any of her predecessors (or successors). Monroe's intoxicating mix of stardom, scandal, celebrity, and tragedy positioned her as an irresistible muse to artists across the globe.
Rotella was a cinema-lover and cast Marilyn as the leading lady in many of his most iconic film poster décollages. This "Marilyn" screenprint embodies his signature décollages aesthetic. Marilyn's radiant beauty and timeless allure are juxtaposed against the torn and collaged "erosions" he created surrounding her.
In addition to representing Italy at the 1964 Venice Biennale, Rotella exhibited works at many of the most prestigious institutions around the globe including the Guggenheim (NYC), MOCA (Los Angeles), and the Centre Pompidou (Paris) to name a few. His works can be found in the permanent collections of the Tate London, the National Gallery of Art (Washington), and Tel Aviv Museum among many others.
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"Marilyn."
USA, 1991
Color screenprint and torn-paper collage on white wove paper
Signed and numbered in pencil lower right
Numbered "I/XX" from an edition of 20 Artists Proof's
31.6"H 24"W (sheet)
34"H 26"W (framed)
Very good condition.
