Renato Parigi

Born in 1939 in the Italian province of Bergamo, Renato Parigi studied sculpture and scenography at the Brera Academy in Milan. Arrived in Paris in 1962, he moved to Vieux Mans in 1964, where he lived at 66 Grand Rue, at the corner of the Conservatory, until 1971. Between 1967 and 1978 Renato Parigi left for long periods in Africa. First in Chad then in Mali, surveying the country from Bamako to Tessalit, the Azawad deserts, areas that are today inaccessible. He will take his colors and large rolls of paper there, which, repatriated in masterful painting, will seed his future work. In 1971, he settled in the Côtes d'Armor at the manor of Kertanguy where he set up his workshop. It is now in this place, as well as in his Parisian workshop, that the essential breath presiding over the continuity of his work is perpetuated. He kept friendships at Le Mans and surrounded himself with craftsmen and efficient collaborators, such as bronze founders like Susse in Paris or Pietrasanta in Italy. Parigi appears in private and public collections in France, Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy and the United States. On a proposal from Jacques Chirac, the Museum of Modern Art of the city of Paris bought a marble sculpture. Since 1976, five exhibition catalogs have been dedicated to him, including a book. Fiercely in love with independence and freedom, the artist has voluntarily kept himself apart from the pressures of the art market which with amazement discovers him today. Extract from the biography written by Rémy Le Guillerm, sculptor.