Francesco Munari
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Francesco Munari

Signature of Francesco Munari

Francesco Munari is an Italian visual artist. He was born in Mezzolombardo, in the province of Trento, in September 1972. He works in pen, pencils and acrylic paint and signs his works with the monogram “FM”.

A drawing from the Figure series in progress
A drawing from the Figure series in progress

In numbers

  • 1972Born in Mezzolombardo, Trentino
  • 3Cities of training: Trento, Bologna, Florence
  • 130+Drawings in the archive
  • 6Series, from birds to the figure

Training

From Mezzolombardo to Florence

  1. 1972

    Mezzolombardo

    Born in September 1972 in the province of Trento. As a boy he spends time with craftsmen and artists in Trentino.

  2. 1987

    Trento

    Enrols at the Istituto d'Arte Alessandro Vittoria, the art school where he earns a diploma as Master of Art in decorative painting. Teachers: G. Debiasi, P. Tartarotti, L. Baldo, G. Zeni, P. Marsilli, A. Caputo.

  3. 1990

    Bologna

    Enrols at the Accademia di Belle Arti (Academy of Fine Arts) and meets artists and critics such as P. Mandelli, M. Venturelli, A. Moussa, Matteoli, A. Baccilieri, Ken Damy and C. Pozzati.

  4. Then

    Florence

    His study of the human figure leads him to the Liceo Artistico Leon Battista Alberti, where he graduates under Castrucci, Mazzoni and Finizzi. He meets Franz Jenull, a pupil of Emilio Vedova.

  5. Today

    Pen, pencil and acrylic

    After watercolour, sculpture and airbrush he works in pen, pencils and acrylic paint, with no fixed style: an archive of more than 130 works, also made to commission.

The line

From the informal to the formal

He has taken part in exhibitions and artistic initiatives, engaging with other cultural circles and constantly questioning his own mark. His work runs from the informal to the formal and spans many colour techniques, with bold tones that give strength to the mark and the subjects.

Over time he has worked in watercolour, sculpture and airbrush. Today he combines pen, pencils and acrylic paint and does not stick to a single style: it changes from one work to the next.

The subjects he returns to most often are animals, and among them birds: kingfishers, bee-eaters, pelicans, raptors, tropical birds. Alongside the naturalistic register there is an ironic bestiary, made of animals placed out of context with an everyday object: a cigar, a lollipop, a pair of red heels. Another line of work is devoted to the female figure, with bodies in chiaroscuro on black fields, fragmented and recomposed, sometimes with gold inserts. The archive is completed by portraits and still lifes.

The artist works on commission and keeps a large archive of visual material.

Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) in profile on a twig, with a turquoise blue back, ochre yellow breast and orange feet. Soft pale background. Drawing by Francesco Munari.KingfisherHippopotamus in profile with a lit cigar between its lips and a thin trail of smoke. Grey hatched skin and a pinkish eye on a softly shaded white ground. Drawing by Francesco Munari.Hippopotamus with a cigarFemale nude in profile crossed by horizontal black bands over shades of pale blue, with a vertical black field and a gold strip on the left. Drawing by Francesco Munari.Striped body

Exhibitions

Exhibitions and press

  1. During his Bologna Academy years, until 31 May

    Riflessione e sacrificio

    Solo exhibition · Sala della Colonna, Cles (Trento)

    Solo exhibition opened by the mayor of Cles. Works between figuration and abstraction, made also with jute and string, from the years when he attended the Academy of Fine Arts in Bologna.

    Newspaper article on the exhibition “Riflessione e sacrificio” in Cles
    Newspaper article on the exhibition “Riflessione e sacrificio” in Cles

  2. 9–30 August

    Acqua

    Solo exhibition · Sala delle Fonti di Rabbi, Rabbi (Trento)

    Solo exhibition inspired by the springs and natural setting of the Val di Rabbi. The local press described him as an artist from Denno working in iron, wood, marble, glass, stone and paper drawn in pen with touches of colour.

    Newspaper article “L'acqua di Munari” on the exhibition at Fonti di Rabbi
    Newspaper article “L'acqua di Munari” on the exhibition at Fonti di Rabbi
    Poster for the exhibition at the Sala delle Fonti di Rabbi
    Poster for the exhibition at the Sala delle Fonti di Rabbi

  3. 22–29 May 2003

    Violare lo spazio

    Solo exhibition · Fondoperduto, Via Maggio 43, Firenze

    Solo exhibition at the Fondoperduto space in the Oltrarno district. Opening on 22 May at 7 pm.

    Invitation to the exhibition “Violare lo spazio”, Florence 2003
    Invitation to the exhibition “Violare lo spazio”, Florence 2003

Alongside these, other solo and group exhibitions.

The studio

Where the drawings are made

Pencils and colours on the work table
Pencils and colours on the work table
The studio
The studio
A drawing from the Figure series in progress
A drawing from the Figure series in progress

At a glance

Artist profile

  • NameFrancesco Munari
  • BornMezzolombardo (Trento), September 1972
  • OccupationVisual artist, draughtsman
  • EducationIstituto d'Arte Alessandro Vittoria, Trento (Master of Art in decorative painting); Accademia di Belle Arti, Bologna (Bologna Academy of Fine Arts); Liceo Artistico Leon Battista Alberti, Florence
  • TechniquesPen, pencils and acrylic paint
  • BackgroundWatercolour, sculpture, airbrush
  • SubjectsBirds, wildlife, figure, portraits, still life
  • SignatureMonogram “FM”
  • Contactinfo@francescomunari.art

See the works or write to Francesco.

View the worksWrite to Francesco