Mario Tozzi

Autograph Letter: Esposizione romana e gioia spirituale by Mario Tozzi - 1934

1934

He was born in Isola di Fano (a hamlet in the municipality of Fossombrone) in the province of Pesaro-Urbino, the first of five children. His father, Giacinto Tommaso, a doctor, settled the family in Suna on the Piedmontese shore of Lake Maggiore. He abandoned his studies in chemistry at the L. Cobianchi Institute in Intra to devote himself to his artistic calling, enrolling in the Academy of Fine Arts in Bologna in 1913, where he met Morandi and Licini. He graduated in 1915. He served in the military during the First World War, in which he lost two brothers. Discharged in 1919, he married a young Frenchwoman, Marie Therese Lemaire, and settled with her in Paris. There, he exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Indépendantes, the Salon d'Automne, and the Salon des Tuileries, where he was immediately noticed by critics. In 1926, he reunited with his friend Licini in Paris and met other avant-garde Italian painters. In particular, he became friends with the painter and poster designer Severo Pozzati. In the same year, he exhibited at the first Novecento exhibition. He founded the Groupe des Sept (Group of Seven, also known as Les Italiens de Paris) with Campigli, de Chirico, de Pisis, Paresce, Savinio, and Severini. The 1930s were a period of great success for him. He was awarded the Legion of Honor by the French government. 1936-1957: Return to Rome and Health Problems edit After returning to Rome in 1936, he devoted himself to fresco painting (in 1938 for the interior of the Palace of Justice in Milan). He exhibited at the Venice Biennale in 1938 and 1942. The 1940s and 1950s were a long period of little work for him, but one of deep reflection, which saw him absent from exhibitions due to serious health problems. He did, however, participate in the Venice Biennale in 1948, 1952, and 1954. He finally resumed exhibiting in 1958 at the Annunciata Gallery in Milan. In 1960, he settled in the family home in Suna. His paintings with "white backgrounds" and his color lithographs depicting female heads are well-known from this period. In 1971, he returned to France to be close to his daughter and grandchildren. He died there in 1979. In 1988, Giorgio Mondadori Editore published the General Catalogue Raisonné of Mario Tozzi's Paintings, a two-volume work edited by Marilena Pasquali in close collaboration with her daughter Francesca Tozzi and the Studio Tozzi in Foiano della Chiana (Arezzo) represented by Professor Tiezzi. In 2012, the Mario Tozzi Artistic and Cultural Association was established. In 2021, the Ministry of Culture declared the Mario Tozzi Archives of Particularly Important Historical Interest, protecting them as cultural heritage.