The Doglianese art protagonist from today in Shanghai. It is that of Claudio Diatto, an artist who collaborated at a very young age in the restoration of the Basilica of Superga, Palazzo Madama and the Turin Cathedral before retiring to the Doglianese countryside and devoting himself only to art.
His works are the co-stars, with those of the Beijing artist Guo Donglai, of the exhibition “Into The Woods” which opens today in Shanghai. The link between the two artists is wood: as the raw material of the works of Guo Donglai, and that of the woods portrayed through cutting, painting and assembly in the works of Diatto.
The idea of involving them in a joint exhibition was suggested by Raffaella Gallo, an engineer from Cebana, in China for over ten years and collaborator of the ArtCN Gallery which organizes the exhibition.
“The gallery – explains Raffaella – historically seeks to make art a bridge between East and West, to present Chinese artists with overseas experiences, and foreign artists with experiences in China”.
Like Claudio Diatto who was the protagonist of an exhibition in Beijing ten years ago with a series of carved and painted paper works, and Guo Donglai who finished his artistic studies in Bologna and was very influenced by poor art. «I have always known Claudio Diatto, and I had the opportunity to follow more than thirty years of his career – says Raffaella Gallo-. Guo Donglai, on the other hand, was the guest of one of the meetings that he organizes monthly to get to know artists from the area and beyond ».
The real common denominator is the love for the forest. For Claudio Diatto, originally from Turin, the woods of the Doglianese Langa have been home for a long time, since he was 25 and he decided to leave the world following a serious family loss. «The works exhibited in Shanghai are 40, and are part of the series“ Divenire ”(Become) – explains Gallo -. Diatto’s woods are not a naturalistic representation, but a stylized one, and the bright colors of his fragments suggest Matisse’s lesson. For Guo Donglai it is nature itself that becomes an instrument of representation. He uses real, simple materials that he composes on the canvas, creating the illusion of three-dimensionality ».
The exhibition, curated by Kaimei Wang, is organized in collaboration with the Consulate General of Italy in Shanghai and the Italian Cultural Institute in Shanghai as part of the Italy-China 2022 Year of Culture and Tourism. It remains open until 27 March. Gallo will open the window on Italy on Instagram (artcaffe_byraffaellagallo).