Mabellini Isaia Sarenco Biography
Isaia Mabellini Sarenco was born in Vobarno in 1945. After studying philosophy at the University of Milan, he began his career as an artist as a linear poet in 1961, and then quickly moved on to verbo-visual research. In 1963 he came into contact with the Gruppo 70 of Florence and became friends with Eugenio Miccini. Also in the same year, he founded and directed his first self-publishing magazine, "Il Tarlo Valsabbino", among the many he created during his career.
Since the first years of artistic activity, Sarenco has carried out an intense editorial and organizational activity, exhibiting his works in Italy and abroad, sharing ideas and art with many important artists and critics. In 1968, together with Enrico Pedrotti, he founded the Gallery-Bookshop La Comune di Brescia and, shortly afterwards, inaugurated the publications of the magazine "Amodulo" and the Edizioni of the same name.
In the following years, he opened important exhibition spaces in Brescia, such as the Amodulo Gallery in 1970 and the Brescia Studio in 1972. In 1971, he founded the magazine "Lotta Poetica" with Paul De Vree, trying to unite the work of the Amodulo publishing house with that of the Belgian De Taffelronde. Over the years, the magazine was published in three series: from 1971 to 1975, from 1982 to 1984 and in 1987.
In the 1980s, Sarenco founded the record magazine "RadioTaxi" and made his first short film, "Collage", in 1984, followed by five more films.
Since 1982, he has undertaken numerous trips to Africa, where he established a deep connection with the land and decided to move to Kenya long-term. Since then, Africa has become the protagonist of his artistic production, culminating in the installation "The audience of Humanity", presented at the 2001 Venice Biennale.
Even in recent years, between Italy and Kenya, Sarenco has persevered in his activity as a promoter, cultural organizer and visual artist, founding the magazine "Sarenco's", the new series of "Lotta Poetica" and establishing the Sarenco Club Gallery and some cultural centers such as the European Archive of Film and Artist Video.
