Enrico Castellani (b. Castelmassa, Italy, 1930 – d. Celleno, Italy, 2017) was a leading figure of the post-war European avant-garde and is widely regarded as a key forerunner of Minimalism. His practice pursued a synthesis of painting, sculpture, and architecture, challenging and expanding the traditional boundaries of painting. In his signature monochromatic works, Castellani created a rhythmic play of light and shadow through surface manipulation – using nails and other materials behind tautly stretched canvases to form subtle protrusions and recessions. These relief-like surfaces invite a dynamic optical and spatial experience.
In 1959, together with Piero Manzoni, Castellani co-founded the experimental Galleria Azimut in Milan and the related journal Azimuth, establishing the city as a central hub of the ZERO movement. His work is held in major public collections worldwide, including the Centre Pompidou, Paris; Fondazione Prada, Milan; Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; MACRO, Rome; Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice; and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington D.C. Castellani represented Italy at the Venice Biennale in 1964, 1966, 1984, and 2003.
