Morciano di Romagna, 1926 – Milano, 2025

A multifaceted artist, Arnaldo Pomodoro is considered one of the most important Italian sculptors of the 20th century. He was born in Morciano di Romagna in 1926 and spent his childhood between Pesaro and Rimini.

In the 1950s, he became interested in sculpture, a passion he shared with his younger brother Giò Pomodoro, with whom he shared a studio.

In 1954, he moved with his family to Milan, where he met Lucio Fontana, Enrico Baj and many other artists on the Milanese scene at the time. He exhibited with his brother at the Galleria del Naviglio in Milan and then at the Galleria Il Cavallino in Venice, and in 1956 they both participated in the Venice Biennale.

His international fame grew thanks to a number of exhibitions in the United States. He won the International Prize for Sculpture at the São Paulo Biennale and was given a personal room at the 1964 Venice Biennale. In the 1970s, he also taught at Berkeley University and, in the 1980s, at Oakland College. He continued to participate in important art exhibitions.

His work is based on the deformation of geometric solids such as spheres, cones and cubes that reveal their interior. While his early sculptures were small in size, from 1966 onwards he moved on to large-scale works and also to imposing sculptures often designed for open spaces.

Pomodoro’s works are found all over the world, many located in squares and public places, such as those visible in the Cortile della Pigna of the Vatican Museums and in the gardens of the Royal Palace in Copenhagen and the forecourt of the UN headquarters in New York.