Alessandro Butera: The Journey of an Abstract Spatialist Artist
Alessandro Butera: The Journey of an Abstract Spatialist Artist
Alessandro Butera's story is one of a passion that has been able to transform itself and find new ways of expression. As journalist and writer Gianluca Tantillo recounted in his article "The fairy tale of the baker from Brancaccio who became an artist" (Balarm), Butera began as a baker. But before dedicating himself completely to artistic creation, Butera gained fundamental experience: starting in 1992, and for 22 years, he worked as a high-level art dealer, operating throughout Italy.
From Experience in the Market to Personal Expression
This long parenthesis in the art trade was not a "detour", but an essential part of his training. It allowed him to get to know important artists closely, to study their techniques, to understand the dynamics of the market, to refine his taste and his vision. He sold works of art all over the country, coming into contact with collectors, gallery owners, critics, and acquiring a deep understanding of the contemporary art world.
The Artistic Turning Point: Spatialism and Informal Abstraction
In 2014, the passion for creation became primary. Butera decided to create, not just to sell. He began to paint and sculpt, self-taught, but with a base of knowledge and of experience that few artists can boast.
His research turned towards the Spatialism of Lucio Fontana, a movement that fascinates him for its ability to go beyond the canvas, to explore space in a new way. Butera defines himself as "a spatialist with the need, from time to time, to liberate instinctiveness through informal abstraction". This is why, alongside the spatialist works of the "Italian Style" series (extroflexions, bas-reliefs, sculptures, also with LED light), we find the informal works of the "Abstraction" series, full of gestural energy, and the "Jazz" series, a tribute to music and improvisation.
Techniques and Materials Butera mainly uses oil on canvas and acrylic, applying the color with a spatula and, in some works, with the dripping technique. His extroflexions, distinctive elements of his spatialist production, are made with white Lycra stretched over wooden and PLA structures, 3D printed, and supported by MDF. The finish is often in acrylic paint, for an effect of intense brightness.
Exhibitions, Awards and Publications
Butera has exhibited in Italy and abroad. His anthological exhibition "2017 - 2022 Viaggio alla ricerca della bellezza" (in Palermo) marked an important moment. Newspapers and magazines have written about him, like the art and design magazine DOOR of La Repubblica (GEDI group).
My Artistic Philosophy
"Art is a continuous exploration," says Butera, "a journey in search of beauty in pure emotion, in gesture, in color, in matter."
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