Francesco Clemente

Stumble upon this great artist while doing my usual search on world art. a part of his work reminds me so much of our very own Bhupen Khakkar. Heres presenting the artist himself.

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Francesco Clemente (b. Naples 23 March 1952) is an Italian painter. His work shows both surrealist and expressionist references. Clemente was self taught and studied architecture in 1970 at the University of Rome. Following his studies he explored his psyche with the use of psychedelics and traveled to India to experience Hindu spirituality.

 Since 1982 he has spent his time between Italy, New York City and Madras (now Chennai) in India, where he collaborates with local artists. In 1986, he created the Hanuman Books series with Raymond Foye which is a collection of 48 miniature handmade books featuring American and European poets and philosophers, edited by George Scrivani and printed in Madras. He did some paintings in collaboration with Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat in the 1980s. Clemente is a member ofAmerican Academy of Arts and Letters.

 He was involved with the ItalianTransavanguardia. A period of experiment resulted in a hallucinatory style which expressed an infernal imaginary world in livid tones, leaden greys, violet-toned nocturnes, olive or petrol green. His painting, which ranges from tragic scenes to ironic self-portraits, begins with a pre-existing image, transforming its meaning by shifts as subtle as they are unpredictable.

He still regularly works in India and lives in New York City with his wife Alba and their four children. His daughter, Chiara, is a film director and producer.