Giuseppe Corrado

Corrado was born on January 1, 1960 in the region of Lecce in southern Italy, and following his primary education he graduated from the Liceu Art School in Lecce. He continued his studies at the University of Motor Science in Foggia, capital of Foggia province in Lecce, and subsequently briefly taught physical education. However, around age 24 he abandoned teaching in order to devote himself to sculpting (as well as some painting). He would sketch out the designs for his sculptures, but used these drawings simply as non-binding concepts, because during construction he would often make radical changes. Robust figures in which the physicality of the material (primarily stone) was manifest, he began to win great accolades for his work. In 1994 he donated a sculpture of Jesus Christ to Pope John Paul II, and he exhibited his work widely. In 2002 he was awarded the title of “best living Italian sculptor” by the Society of Arts and Letters.

Beginning around 1993, he lived and worked at the “Artistic Laboratory” in Montesano, a corner lot that he set off with monumental sculptures incorporated as part of the perimeter wall. This laboratory became a meeting place for artists and sculptors from all over the world, as well as an opportunity for Corrado to experiment and install numerous sculptures on site. Living and working in the same space enabled him to become all-consumed by his art. In an interview in 2013 he commented, “Oggi mi son talmente abituato a questo modo di vivere che non saprei vivere in maniera diversa. Se non faccio arte, mi sento un uomo morto (Today I am so used to this way of life that I could not live in a different way. If I do not do art, I feel like a dead man).” He was often asked about the difficulties of structuring his creative work and studio as a business, but he felt as if he needed to create continuity between his art, craftsmanship, enterprise, and social consciousness, and he generally relied on accountants and others to handle the business end of his activities.

Corrado suffered from a serious illness the last five years of his life and died in March, 2016; posthumously, he was awarded the post of lecturer at the Academy of Fine Arts in Lecce. At the time of this writing, access to the studio is not available to the public, but many of the sculptures are visible from the street.

~Jo Farb Hernández, 2017

Jo Farb Hernández

14 Via della Libertà
Montesano Salentino, Puglia, 73030 it
Latitude/Longitude: 39.9798496 / 18.3238835

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