lucecolore

I am glad to submit you my website http://www.ponziettore.it dedicated to the italian painter Ettore Ponzi (1908-1992).
Ettore Ponzi studied at the Art Institute of Parma with Paolo Baratta, Guido Marussigh and Pietro Berzolla, and he got his degree in 1934.
During the second world war he gained the first prize in the Artistic Competition of Military Division in Arezzo and participated to the second edition of the Cremona city Prize. After the 8th of September
1943 he was interned in the concentration camp of Witzendorf, where he remained until the end of the conflict in April 1945. This bitter experience is documented in approximately forty works in pencil and water-colour.
Returned in his native land in August 1945 he found his city wounded by the aerial bombardment and his house destroyed. He settled with the family in a ruined palace placed in the flank of the apse of the cathedral, this gave him the opportunity to witness in his paintings the state of the monument and its neighbourhood.
He was mainly a landscape painter and considered also a good portraitist.

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cavalletto13.JPG (10.3 KB, 49 views)

Walter

Very impressive work. I was particularly taken by the Images of Fidenza.
- Walter Idlewild

John

It's not typical of most of the works displayed, but I was really struck by the painting Scamandro. It has a kind of Futurist feel to it. I personally don't care much for pure abstraction, but I do like the effect when figurative composition is pushed to the point of abstraction.

http://www.ponziettore.it/informale.html

lucecolore

You can find additional info on Ettore Ponzi works on ollowing adresses:

http://artefidenza.blogspot.com/
http://lucecolore.blogspot.com/

lucecolore

A new page in English is added to my website www.ponziettore.it.
In this page you can find some of the works made by the painter Ettore Ponzi during the period of imprisonment in the nazist lager of Wiezendorf in the years 1944 and 1945.

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Natale 1944.jpg (23.0 KB, 35 views)

Unregistered

Hello,

I found this thread as I was trying to find out information about some paintings, done on board, in post WWII Italy. You're the only person I've found who knows something about art in post WWII Italy. I hope you don't mind my asking here.

These paintings were brought to the USA after WWII by an American soldier, and I obtained them about 10 years ago from his niece, who got them when he died. I wondered if you know anything about these artists? They look like nice paintings to me, and I intend to frame them and hang them. But I wondered if anyone knew if these guys were just amateurs or if they were known in the Italian art world. I think the one name is French (cazot??). I can't find any info about the others. Maybe because I can't read the letters. There is also some writing on the backs of the board, which I also can't make out, but if I spoke Italian I probably could. Any help would be appreciated. Here is a URL for photos of the paintings. Thanks for reading this!!

http://www.djehuti.com/ItalianPaintings

John

I think the French name is "Corot". Corot was a famous 19th-century landscape painter, but there are a zillion fakes out there signed "Corot". He's possibly the single most forged painter. You see his signature on eBay paintings all the time.

Of course that's not an opinion about your painting in particular; you didn't even post a picture of it. I'm just warning you.

vacox

Hi John,

Thanks for the reply. There are pictures of the Cazot (or Corot) picture at the link I posted, www.djehuti.com/ItalianPaintings. I guess it could have been somebody trying to forge, but they're done on wood board with Italian writing, and the uncle told his niece he knew the guys who did the paintings while he was stationed in Italy after WWII. He said they painted on anything they could get their hands on. Maybe she got the story wrong, though. Anyway, the pictures show a close-up of each painter's signature--there are 2 by the Cazot or Corot guy, 2 by somebody named Henry (?) and 1 by Martini (although the r is backwards). Thanks again,

Vanessa

Judy Decker

Greetings Vanessa,

The Corot paintings are not by the famous painter John wrote about.
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot
http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists...e-camille.html

His signature is usually on the left hand side in all capital letters.

I couldn't find any famous "Corot" artist that was painting during the war (doing a Google search) - but did find this interesting article:

http://www.artnews.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=1853
>> Art historians have noted that Corot sometimes authorized poor artists who imitated him to put his name on their paintings so that they would be easier to sell.

>>In the recent ARTnews survey of art forgery, experts were asked, Who are the ten most faked artists in history?

The almost unanimous vote went to Corot. Here is the list, in alphabetical order:

Giorgio de Chirico (1888–1978)

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot (1796–1875)

Salvador Dalí (1904–89)

Honoré Daumier (1808–79)

Vincent van Gogh (1853–90)

Kazimir Malevich (1878–1935)

Amedeo Modigliani (1884–1920)

Frederic Remington (1861–1909)

Auguste Rodin (1840–1917)

Maurice Utrillo (1883–1955)

Best wishes finding more information about your collection.

Judy Decker

vacox

Hi John,

I thought I posted this earlier but it hasn't shown up. I did include a link to photos of the paintings, at the very bottom of my previous post (I was Unregistered then...). It's http://www.djehuti.com/ItalianPaintings. This shows pictures of all five of the paintings. The signature might be Corot, but from the woman's story her uncle knew all the guys who painted these paintings. Maybe she got it wrong or I misremember. I just looked up Corot and none of his known signatures look like this, so my guess is that it isn't some one who was trying to forge. Could be wrong. Thanks for any further input you might have!

Vanessa

John

It still looks like "Corot" to me, but maybe it's not a forgery. Maybe it's just someone with that name, or who uses it as a pen name, so to speak.

vacox

Thank you both for your replies and information. Sorry for the double posting.....

Vanessa

lucecolore

The painter of the first picture is Egidio Martini. Se below biography.
Ambrogio Ponzi

Egidio Martini was born in Venice in 1919, son of Ermenegildo, appreciated Venetian painter of the early decades of the twentieth century. Already in his young years he dedicated himself to drawing and painting.
He attended, around 1936, the Institute of art as Carmini. Continues until 1940 with an intense painting many views of Venice. In 1939 exhibited at the XXIX Mostra Bevilacqua La Masa Collective. That same year he attended at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia courses taught by Guido Cadorin. Between 1940 and 1943, while doing military service in Trapani, exhibited some works in Palermo, the exhibition of artists in Arms (1942), where he won the Prince of Piedmont. On his return to Venice to participate XXXIV Collective Bevilacqua La Masa (1944) and organize a united mind Oscar Cavallet, its staff, on Botteghe Art in San Marco. In 1944 he dedicated himself to the restoration of ancient paintings, under the leadership of Gino Heat, showing a peculiar predisposition for a job as complex as delicate. A job that will occupy him for several decades, with only brief moments to devote to his painting. In 1947 he was present at the exhibition of four hundred paintings to unpublished Procuratie New XXXVII and Collective Bevilacqua La Masa. In 1955 works to the Marzotto Prize for Valdagno.
Having acquired a solid technical and cultural about ancient Martini undertakes on its behalf studies on the subject, which would be specific knowledge that allow him to become one of the most esteemed historians and connoisseurs of Venetian painting. Will, in fact, in large part on whether the Martini will be given to certain painters their more correct value in the context of Venetian art history, and with the publication of three volumes monumentali rich discoveries and clarifications, criticisms (of Venetian Painting XVIII, 1964, The Venetian painting of the eighteenth century, 1982, The Venetian painting and the other Italian fifteenth to the nineteenth century, 1992) and with a large number of studies published in over forty years' time, the most prestigious Italian art magazines . At the same time, while in recent decades welcomed its work conservator, a scholar and teacher of all restoration 'Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia (in 1981-1982), continues to collect, which began around 1945 with insight and considerable sacrifices, various works
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vacox

Ambrogio,

Thank you very much for that information! Prof. Martini is an amazing man, I read your bio and some other information I found on the web about him. I'm so pleased, thank you very much!

Vanessa

lucecolore

The above Ettore Ponzi watercolor is dated April 1945 at Wietzendorf in Germany.