Costantino Nivola: Graffiti, Sculpture, Drawings & Prints

Opening on August 9th and on view through September 9th, The Drawing Room is pleased to present an exhibition of Costantino Nivola's graffiti, sculpture, drawings and prints. Organized in collaboration with the estate of the artist, the selection includes many works which have never previously been exhibited. Sculpture in marble, bronze, and concrete spanning his most prolific years 1962–1982 form the core of the show, while the graphic works add breadth and additional context. Together the works on view highlight Nivola’s passion for experimentation, the vigor of his graphic sensibility and the lyrical expression he achieved in diverse sculptural mediums.

Among the earliest works in the show are a group of 1960s graffiti drawings the artist made applying wet cement over wood panels. These were models that preceded large scale murals he masterminded for public buildings. His inventive process in concrete defined an original aesthetic contribution to mid-century art and architecture.

In a series of ink and pastel drawings arranged to evoke postcards of tourist destinations, Nivola captured the classical sites of Rome, Athens and Milan and the frenzy of traffic in each city. A group of delicately rendered lithographs of figures on beds are juxtaposed with his dramatic clay sculptures of sleeping couples.

See below for full press release and catalog.