Piero Dorazio

Italian, 1927-2005

Piero Dorazio (Rome, June 29, 1927 - Perugia, May 17, 2005) was an Italian painter. His work was related to color field painting, lyrical abstraction and other forms of abstract art. Dorazio was born in Rome. His father was a civil servant, while his mother was interested in history and art. Dorazio attended Julius Caesar Lyceum (high school) in Rome. The family fled to their homeland province of Abruzzo in 1943. After the war, Dorazio worked briefly as a translator for the British Army and then studied architecture at the University of Rome. He was influenced by futurists such as Gino Severini, Antonio Corpora, Enrico Prampolini, and Giacomo Balla, attracting him to painting. An aversion to their right-wing views pushed him to align instead with left-leaning artists like Renato Guttuso. Along with Pietro Consagra, Achille Perilli, and Giulio Turcato, he helped formulate a manifesto and establish a group of abstract artists in 1947 called Forma I. Although imbued with socialist leanings, the group did not follow the realist social commentary furthered by Guttuso but proposed to reclaim abstraction from Futurism. In 1947 Dorazio won a prize and a stipend from the French government to study at the École des Beaux-Arts of Paris. Dorazio, along with artists Mino Perilli and Guerrini, helped found L'Age d'Or in 1950. It was a bookstore/gallery space dedicated to abstract art. In 1952, he promoted the foundation Origin with Alberto Burri, Ettore Colla and others, and edited the magazine Arti Visive. As a representative of Italy, in 1953 he traveled for the first time to the United States to participate in the International Summer Seminar at Harvard University. That fall, he moved to New York City and stayed through 1954. In October 1953, Dorazio had his first solo exhibition at George Wittenborn's One-Wall Gallery. He published La Fantasia Dell-Arte Nella Vita Moderna" in 1955, a review of modern art in Italy. Regarding this book, reviewer Christopher Masters states that Dorazio advanced his belief, perhaps with a surfeit of optimism, that "abstract art could change the world... That just as science and technology were destroying the barriers between different cultures, so the new 'universal style' would lead to a 'universal civilisation'." He was invited to teach at the Graduate School of Fine Arts program at the University of Pennsylvania School of Design in 1959. He taught painting there for one semester each year from 1960 to 1969, splitting his time between the United States and Italy. In 1970 he returned to live and work full-time in Rome. In 1974 he moved his studio from Rome to Umbria, near Todi. Peter Iden, founding director of the Museum für Moderne Kunst Frankfurt from 1978-1987, acquired three works by Dorazio from 1981 to 1983 (Oracolo, 1959; Blue Hearttrap, 1961; Stridente, 1982-83) for the museum collection.

Average Sold Price

$1,150

Styles

Materials

Related Artists

Piero DorazioGeometric Abstraction, Ex-Bank of New York Collection Lithograph SIgned/N Framed, 1971

$2,800

H 24 in W 20.5 in D 1.5 in

Geometric Abstraction, Ex-Bank of New York Collection Lithograph SIgned/N Framed

By Piero Dorazio

Located in New York, NY

Piero Dorazio Abstract Composition (Bank of New York Corporate Collection), 1971 Lithograph on wove paper Pencil signed, numbered 73/75 and dated on the front. The back bears a label...

Category

1970s Abstract Geometric Piero Dorazio

Materials

Lithograph

Piero DorazioUntitled XXVI, Colorful Signed Abstract Screenprint by Piero Dorazio, 1970

$1,850

H 28.5 in W 38.5 in

Untitled XXVI, Colorful Signed Abstract Screenprint by Piero Dorazio

By Piero Dorazio

Located in Long Island City, NY

Untitled XXVI Piero Dorazio, Italian (1927–2005) Date: 1970 Screenprint, signed and numbered in pencil Edition of 37/80 Size: 28.5 x 38.5 in. (72.39 x 97.79 cm) Printer: Erker Presse...

Category

1970s Abstract Expressionist Piero Dorazio

Materials

Screen

Piero DorazioItalian Abstract Work on Paper Color Field Non-Objective European Mid-Century, 1949

$20,000

H 19 in W 15 in

Italian Abstract Work on Paper Color Field Non-Objective European Mid-Century

By Piero Dorazio

Located in New York, NY

Italian Modern Abstract Work on Paper Color Field Non-Objective European Mid-Century - "Gonage" Dorazio completed "Gonage" in 1949 when just after the artist had been awarded a stipend by the French government and admission to the Academy Beaux Arts. There he met George Braque who became great friends but also an influence on Dorazio, of which "Gonage" is a living testament. "Gonage" actual size of the drawing measures 12 x 9 1/2 inches. It is signed on the lower right. The work is affixed to a 19 x 15 inch board which includes the artist's signature and date. There is a torn table on the lower left entitling the piece "Gonage". Provenance follows this piece as a gift in 1950 to the artist-colleague Luigi Lucioni, who then gifted it in 1955 to his friend, the uncle of the current owner who has owned the work since 1988. Bio Born in Italy, Piero Dorazio studied architecture in Rome. At the same time his first abstract works were executed. In 1947 he received a scholarship from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux Arts in Paris, where he contacted Modern artists, who lived in Paris. He founded the galleries "Age d'Or" in Florence and Rome to represent avant-garde arts in Italy. During a one year stay in the USA he got acquainted with leading artists of Abstract Expressionism such as Marc Rothko...

Category

1940s Abstract Piero Dorazio

Materials

Gouache, Board

Piero DorazioUntitled, 1964

$950

H 12.5 in W 18 in D 0.1 in

Untitled

By Piero Dorazio

Located in Summit, NJ

Gorgeous aquatint in reds and oranges by Piero Dorazio (Italian 1927-2005). This aquatint is on heavy "Umbria" Fabriano paper. It is signed and dated 1964 in the lower margin in penc...

Category

1960s Abstract Piero Dorazio

Materials

Aquatint

Piero DorazioUntitled - Original Etching by Piero Dorazio - 1980, 1980

$756

H 19.69 in W 27.56 in D 0.04 in

Untitled - Original Etching by Piero Dorazio - 1980

By Piero Dorazio

Located in Roma, IT

Hand signed, dated and numbered by artist with pencil. Edition of 25 prints in Roman Numerals. Publisher : Romero, Roma Image Dimensions : 30 x 49.2 cm

Category

1980s Abstract Piero Dorazio

Materials

Etching

Piero DorazioComposition - Lithograph by Piero Dorazio - 1972, 1976

$474

H 22.25 in W 30.32 in D 0.04 in

Composition - Lithograph by Piero Dorazio - 1972

By Piero Dorazio

Located in Roma, IT

Composition is an original lithograph realized by Piero Dorazio in 1972. Hand-signed and dated in pencil on the lower right. Edition 106 of 200 prints. Colorful abstract compositi...

Category

1970s Contemporary Piero Dorazio

Materials

Lithograph

Piero DorazioAbstract Composition - West End - Lithograph by Piero Dorazio - 1983, 1983

$805

H 17.33 in W 14.18 in D 0.08 in

Abstract Composition - West End - Lithograph by Piero Dorazio - 1983

By Piero Dorazio

Located in Roma, IT

Image dimensions: 17.7 x 17.7 cm. Abstract Composition in Tondo - West End is a joyful color etching on paper, realized in 1983 by the Italian graphic master Piero Dorazio (Rome, 19...

Category

1980s Abstract Piero Dorazio

Materials

Lithograph

Piero DorazioPiero Dorazio Lithograph Abstract Geometric Quadrilateral Polygon, 1979

$1,500

H 36 in W 26 in

Piero Dorazio Lithograph Abstract Geometric Quadrilateral Polygon

By Piero Dorazio

Located in Detroit, MI

The work is a Lithograph, not numbered, but signed and dated by the artist, Piero Dorazio. The print has an intense color field with a strong linear element being composed of quadril...

Category

1970s Abstract Expressionist Piero Dorazio

Materials

Lithograph

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Piero Dorazio Sale Prices

Sold Date

Sold Price

Category

Medium

Creation Year

2026

$1,150

Abstract Prints

Screen Print

1992

$1,150

Average sold price of items in the past 12 months

$1,150-$1,150

Sold price range of items in the past 12 months

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Piero Dorazio art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Piero Dorazio art available for sale on 1stDibs. If you’re browsing the collection of art to introduce a pop of color in a neutral corner of your living room or bedroom, you can find work that includes elements of blue, orange, pink and other colors. You can also browse by medium to find art by Piero Dorazio in etching, lithograph, aquatint and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the abstract style. Not every interior allows for large Piero Dorazio art, so small editions measuring 9 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Richard Smith, Antoni Clavé, and Mario Padovan. Piero Dorazio art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $165 and tops out at $58,405, while the average work can sell for $950.