Rito Valla Artwork valuations, appraisals and auction estimates

VALLA RITO (Bologna, 1911 – Bologna, 1991) Rito Valla was an Italian sculptor, born in Bologna in 1911. He trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bologna and after graduating he created his own studio in Bologna together with the painter Mario Bonazzi . Read the full biography

VALLA RITO (Bologna, 1911 – Bologna, 1991) Rito Valla was an Italian sculptor, born in Bologna in 1911. He trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bologna and after graduating he created his own studio in Bologna together with the painter Mario Bonazzi . His sculpture recalls the expressionist plastic art of the 20th century, similar to the works of Mario Marini and Giacomo Manzù from the same period. Fundamental sculptures of his artistic career are: "The Hurdler", in which he portrays his sister Ondina Valla, winner of the 1936 Berlin Olympics, the "San Giovannino", "Young athletes who sing", which he presented at the XXII Venice Biennale and to the selection of Italian painters and sculptors in Zurich in 1940 (this work has currently been donated to the Gallery of Modern Art in Bologna). Also famous is the sculpture "Moral corruption and Nazi-fascist violence", created in memory of the Marzabotto massacre and positioned at the entrance of the Palazzina ex Direttissima della Montagnola. In 1954 he created a real monument in honor of the fallen of Malassociazione and all the civilian victims following the bombing of the capital: a terracotta composition that portrays a mother, caught in the tragic moment in which she drags her dead son with her. Valla subsequently had a long artistic break, and then resumed his work with bronze sculptures such as "Bacchanal" (1970) and the "myth of Pasiphae" (1973). His sculpture is remembered for its tendency towards classicism, clearly evident both in the composition of the bodies and in the compositional grace of his subjects, while always maintaining a certain artistic originality in the representation. The works “Ballerina” (1982) and “Tragic Figure” (1983) are from the last phase.