Giacomo Manzù

Giacomo Manzù (1908-1991) is known for his delicate and moving work focusing predominantly on portraiture and religious imagery. Although apprenticed to various craftsmen from an early age, Manzù was largely self- taught. Key influences on his style include the sculptors Auguste Rodin and Medardo Rosso. In the late 1930s Manzù began his renowned series of cardinals, sculpting his sitters enveloped in their liturgical vestments. At this time, he also made a series of bas-reliefs on the theme of the Crucifixion, which were also passionate and unflinching indictments of Nazi-Fascist violence. After the war Manzù established himself as one of Italy’s foremost sculptors of religious subjects but, like his contemporary Emilio Greco, was drawn as much to the sensual world as to that of the spirit. Giacomo Manzù: Sculptor and Draughtsman is at London’s Estorick Collection of Modern Italian Art until 3 April 2016.