Cleto Capponi - Speed

Cleto Capponi's ceramic sculpture draws inspiration from the Futurist movement. The title of the work, "La Velocità," recognizes one of the fundamental tenets of Futurist aesthetics: the flat representation of speed through lines and curves. These themes were dear to the great Futurist masters, from Umberto Boccioni to Carlo Carrà, Luigi Russolo, Giacomo Balla, and Gino Severini, who initiated an unprecedented artistic process, proclaiming a pictorial exploration aimed at capturing the dynamism and movement of the portrayed subject. Futurism, an avant-garde movement, was founded in 1909 by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, with the first of his "manifestos" published in the French magazine Le Figaro that same year. The principles upon which this movement was based were the abolition of all traditional forms of expression, the construction of a culture based on machines, and the dynamism and speed that should pervade modern life. All of this was embraced by numerous artists who sought to capture progress and movement through painting.

Cleto Capponi's choice of medium speaks to the variety of techniques he has employed throughout his artistic career. In this specific case, ceramic becomes an integral part of the artistic process, allowing us to appreciate the artist's skill. The brilliance, an intrinsic characteristic of ceramic, that emerges when observing the work harks back to the Futurist ideal of progress and optimism for the future. The composition is centered on a vanishing point at the center of the ceramic, which draws converging lines toward it, conveying a sense of speed and dynamism that only Futurist painting could convey. The color palette is based on a limited palette, starting with white, which is the foundation but also the most absent color, and culminating in blue, with celestial shades in the background appearing as a contrast to stylized trees and lampposts.

Cleto Capponi was born in Ascoli Piceno in 1912. In 1922, at the age of 10, he had the opportunity to visit the "First Futurist Exhibition within the Provincial Art Exhibition," curated by Ivo Pannaggi, at the Palazzo del Convitto Nazionale in Macerata. Cleto Capponi was fascinated by the Futurist aesthetic, which included works by Balla, Boccioni, Depero, Sironi, and Pannaggi himself, with Filippo Tommaso Marinetti in attendance. The young artist achieved fame in 1934 when, in a publication of Il Messaggero, Cleto Capponi created a caricature of the boxer Primo Carnera. From then on, he received important commissions for Il Messaggero and Il Popolo d'Italia. He also held important public commissions, including the "Monument to the Fisherman" in 1978 in San Benedetto del Tronto, and the Monument to Sailing in Grottammare in 1985. During his lifetime, he also taught art at the "G. Leopardi" State Middle School in Grottammare. He died in 2000.

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