Lino Dinetto
Lino Dinetto | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Lino Dinetto September 1, 1927 Este, Veneto, Italy |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Education | Studied in Venice; mentored by Mario Sironi and Carlo Carrà |
| Known for | Mural painting, sacred art, metaphysical painting |
| Notable work | Ultima Cena at Monte Oliveto Abbey; I Porti; Il Cosmo |
| Style | Metaphysical, Cubism, Symbolism, Sacred Art |
| Movement | Italian Modernism, Latin American Constructivism |
| Awards | Grand National Prize, Punta del Este (1959); National Heritage Designation (Uruguay, 2004) |
Lino Dinetto (born 1 September 1927, Este, Italy) is an Italian painter, muralist, and sculptor, recognized for his large-scale frescoes, metaphysical compositions, and evolving style ranging from realism to cubism and symbolism. He is particularly noted for his contributions to sacred and monumental art in both Italy and Uruguay.
Early life and education
[edit]Born in Este, Veneto, Dinetto began his artistic formation in Venice, studying the traditions of the Venetian school. Fascinated by en plein air painting, he found inspiration in the Euganean Hills. He later studied under Italian metaphysical painters Carlo Carrà and Mario Sironi, whose influence led him to explore order, harmony, and color as essential formal concerns.[1]
Career
[edit]Monumental Beginnings
[edit]Dinetto’s early commissions were primarily ecclesiastical. In 1946, he was commissioned to recreate a 40-square-meter Last Supper mural at the Abbey of Monte Oliveto Maggiore in Tuscany, replacing a fresco destroyed during World War II.[2]
Work in Uruguay
[edit]In the early 1950s, Dinetto moved to Montevideo, Uruguay, where he spent nearly five years painting the interior of the Cathedral of San José. The work was widely praised and brought him considerable recognition. From 1955 to 1960, he taught drawing and painting at the Instituto de Bellas Artes San Francisco in Montevideo.[2]
During his time in South America, Dinetto transitioned artistically—embracing Cubism and Constructivism, heavily influenced by the legacy of Joaquín Torres García.[1] His style evolved from figurative traditions to increasingly abstract compositions. His series “I Porti” and “Il Cosmo” won him national awards at the Salón Nacional de Montevideo (1955, 1957) and the Grand National Prize in Punta del Este (1959). That same year, the Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo organized a solo exhibition in his honor.[2]
Return to Italy
[edit]After the São Paulo exhibition, he returned to Italy in 1960, and his mural and stained-glass work resumed intermittently. In 1963, he completed the "Monastic Stories" in the cloister of Santa Maria in Campis in Foligno, followed by stained-glass windows for the Abbey of Monte Oliveto Maggiore in 1964. He later carried out commissions in Lombardy, Tuscany, Lazio, and his home region of Veneto, including decorations at the "Manfredini Institute" in Este.[3]
Among his notable clients was Prince Rainier of Monaco, who commissioned a complete stained-glass cycle for the new church in Monte Carlo. From the late 1970s onward, Dinetto’s artistic output increasingly turned toward philosophical and symbolic compositions such as “Dimensione Parallela,” which explored memory, myth, and narrative abstraction.[3]
Later Work and Exhibitions
[edit]Over the following decades, Dinetto turned to female figures, nudes, and symbolic landscapes, often revisiting themes from the Veneto region.[1] His works convey optimism, serenity, and a humanist vision.
Notable exhibitions include:
- "Disegni e bozzetti per gli affreschi di S. Maria in Campis", Palazzo Trinci, Foligno (1962)
- "Vetrate per Monte Oliveto Maggiore", Pinacoteca Nazionale, Siena (1964)
- IX Quadriennale d’Arte, Rome (1965)
- VII Biennale Nazionale d’Arte Sacra, Bologna–Milan–Rome (1966)
- Biennale Internazionale dello Sport nelle Belle Arti, Madrid (1969, 1973)
- “Una stazione per l’arte: Dinetto”, Venice Santa Lucia Station (1997)[3]
- Retrospective, Museo Nacional de Artes Visuales, Montevideo (2007)[4]
- "Harmonia", Palazzo dei Trecento, Treviso (2010–2011)[1]
- "Forma e bellezza", Este, Italy (2013), a return to his birthplace after 70 years[1]
- "Aurum: Between Sacred and Profane", Palazzo Todesco, Vittorio Veneto (2014–2015)[1]
In 2004, his body of work was declared National Historic Heritage by the Uruguayan government.
Selected works
[edit]- Paisaje (1958), tempera on paper – Museo Nacional de Artes Visuales, Montevideo
- Mujer y niño (c. 1955), oil on canvas – Museo Nacional de Artes Visuales, Montevideo
- Puerto No. 18 (1958), oil on canvas – Museo Biblioteca Municipal, Fray Bentos[4]
Collections
[edit]- The Courtauld, London – Holds Female Nude (c. 1955), part of the Samuel Courtauld Trust Collection.[5]
- Museo Nacional de Artes Visuales (MNAV), Montevideo, Uruguay – Holds multiple works by Dinetto, including Paisaje (1958, tempera on paper), Mujer y niño (c. 1955, oil on canvas), and Puerto No. 18 (1958, oil on canvas).[4]
- Museo Biblioteca Municipal, Fray Bentos, Uruguay – Holds Dinetto’s painting Puerto No. 18 (1958).[4]
- Galería de las Misiones, Montevideo: Featured Dinetto's Abstracto (1961, oil on cloth) in the exhibition "Informalism in Uruguay" (2015)[6]
- Pananti Casa d'Aste, Florence: Auctioned Dinetto's Figure (oil on plywood) in their Modern and Contemporary Art sale[7]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f "Lino Dinetto (Este 01/09/1927) La mia Metafisica". www.eugeniodavenezia.eu. Retrieved 2025-04-29.
- ^ a b c "Lino Dinetto | Operars.com". www.operars.com. Retrieved 2025-04-29.
- ^ a b c "Lino Dinetto". Maestri del ‘900 italiano. Retrieved 2025-04-29.
- ^ a b c d "Artista: Lino Dinetto". Museo Nacional de Artes Visuales (in Spanish). Retrieved 2025-04-29.
- ^ "Dinetto, Lino, b.1927 | Art UK". artuk.org. Retrieved 2025-05-08.
- ^ "Lino Dinetto, Abstracto, 1961". galería de las misiones. Retrieved 2025-05-08.
- ^ Multimedia, THETIS Srl Grafica-. "Lino Dinetto : Figure - Oil on plywood - Auction Modern and Contemporary art". Galleria Pananti Casa d'Aste. Retrieved 2025-05-08.