Artist's Statement
Umberto Nigi was born in the smallest island of Toscana, Gorgona, Italy on May 13, 1945. Nigi is an artist who has produced a personal poetry of great lyrical strength including a refined artistic expression and wide field of painting techniques. Prolific and fertile, a decade living in Brasil, Nigi's humble beginnings now reflect a renowned reputation.
Early in his career, critics deemed his primitive expression a classification insufficient to cover the vitality and restlessness of his early work .
On a visit to New York, Nigi was impressed by the abstract paintings of Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning , and especially with the paintings of Mark Rothko. Even today, some twenty year later, Rothko's influence continues to dominate Nigi's palette platform and composition.
However, Nigi's sensitivity, personal growth and individualism shines through and rings true. Nigi's maturity and refinement seen through his aggressive simplicity defines his departure from his mentor Mark Rothko.