Arnaldo Pomodoro, the renowned Italian sculptor, passed away on Sunday at his home in Milan. He was 98 years old. Pomodoro’s death was confirmed by his niece, Carlotta Montebello, who serves as the director general of the Pomodoro Foundation in Milan.
The artist’s passing came just one day before his 99th birthday. Known for his monumental spherical sculptures, Pomodoro’s works can be found in public spaces around the world. These highly polished yet fractured bronze spheres stand outside the United Nations in New York, inside Vatican City, on the campus of Trinity College Dublin, and at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C., among many other locations.
Pomodoro was a self-taught artist who initially trained as an engineer and goldsmith.
Pomodoro’s monumental spheres remembered
His other notable public works include “Entrance to the Labyrinth,” a large maze adorned with cuneiform sculptural formations in Milan, a controversial fiberglass crucifix in the Cathedral of St.
John the Evangelist in Milwaukee, and “Disco,” a giant bronze disk, also located in Milan. Glenn D. Lowry, director of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, commented on Pomodoro’s significance in 2021, stating, “Pomodoro was one of a number of important European artists to emerge from the aftermath of the Second World War whose work dealt with the effects of a world destabilized by nuclear arms, economic hardships and the trauma of the Holocaust.”
Pomodoro’s spheres gained worldwide attention in the 1960s, earning him the International Prize for Sculpture at the São Paulo Biennale in 1963 and the National Prize for Sculpture at the Venice Biennale the following year.
The Marlborough Gallery hosted two major solo exhibitions of his work in Rome and New York in 1965, and he was featured in Time magazine. The artist’s work emerged during a tumultuous postwar era, reflecting the complexities of a world in turmoil. His highly polished spheres, revealing intricate cores beneath their smooth surfaces, serve as lasting symbols of the tension and beauty he found in the modern world.
Arnaldo Pomodoro’s legacy as a pioneering sculptor will continue to inspire and captivate audiences, as his monumental works stand as testaments to his creative vision and artistic prowess.
