By Gianni Orsini
In late 1938, when the Italian painter Romualdo Locatelli (1905-1942/43) decided to venture out upon a working trip to the (former) Dutch East Indies with his wife Erminia, he had already reached the summit of his career in his homeland. Among his personal connections were Italy’s royal, political, and religious elite; during 1938 he had painted portraits of the Crown Prince’s two children, of Benito Mussolini’s daugher, and of a Vatican Cardinal, while a portrait of the later Pope Pius XII was already commissioned. At that moment, no one could predict that Locatelli’s artistry would soar even higher in the Far East.
This is the first biography to foucs in detail on the final four years of Locatelli’s brief yet eventful existence. It tells the story of a painter who reached fullest artistic bloom in the turbulent period when Southeast Asia was plunged into World War II, who tragically and mysteriously disappeared there, at the age of 37, and thus, during the following 75 years, attained a status that evolved to mythological proportions.
Limited Edition
Hardcover
27 cm x 34 cm (portrait)
196 pages
Wilco Art Books
2019
9090315365
About Afterhours Books
Afterhours Books is an international award-winning, independent book publisher for art, culture, design, lifestyle, and wisdom from Jakarta, Indonesia. We aim to enrich people’s lives and perspectives with our well-written, visually-appealing, meticulously-designed, and premium-quality books.
