Dario Carmentano Biography
Dario Carmentano is an artist born in Matera in 1960. He trained as an engraver at Grafica in via Sette Dolori. In 1990 he founded the ARTERìa Cultural Association, while in 1999 he created FARO Coordinamento Associazioni per l'Arte, which organized a series of events and meetings between artists and cultural associations from Southern Italy.
In 1999 he met the supporters of ORESTE, the collective of relational artists, with whom he collaborated in the organization of ORESTE 2 Residency program for artists and curators. His artistic research focuses on high-value anthropological symbols, sacred icons, cult objects and words and swear words with a strong socio-cultural impact. Through the meticulous analysis of collective devotion, social ritual, popular culture and its most truthful implications, Dario Carmentano looks at the healed and primordial value of symbols, at the reasoning on the phonetic and cultural roots of a phrase, at the heart of many icons which we often do not perceive in their original integrity.
The artist uses an ironic and irreverent attitude, overturning popular platitudes with a humanistic sense, respect for modus and synthetic visual calibration. His technique includes a never dogmatic mix of manualism and simplified technologies, confirming the moral strength of a journey that crosses historical time without any fear of doubt.
Dario Carmentano has participated in numerous international art exhibitions in Italy, France, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Russia, Cuba, Brazil, Hungary, Japan, Poland, Slovenia, Holland, Norway, Switzerland, USA, Australia and Greece.
