Stefano Castronovo
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Stefano Castronovo (born January 19, 1950[1]) is an Italian-born artist. He is associated with the downtown New York art scene of the 1980s. His work combines elements of realism with a stylized, expressive approach and has been linked to Postminimalist. In addition to his canvas work and street art, Castronovo became known for his hand-painted portraits on leather jackets, depicting popular cultural figures.
Castronovo was born and raised in Trieste, Italy.[1] He demonstrated artistic ability at an early age and, at thirteen, was taken on by a mentor for private instruction.[1] By fourteen, he had been accepted into a gallery in Trieste, where he exhibited alongside adult artists. He reportedly retired from formal exhibition at eighteen.[1]
Following his early career in Italy, Castronovo traveled extensively throughout Europe, experimenting with drugs in cities such as Munich, Lisbon, and parts of Spain.[1] He ceased drug use in the 1970s and subsequently moved to the United States, living first in New York and later in Los Angeles, where he resumed painting.[1]
In November 1974, Castronovo presented an exhibition of three laser-lit holograms at the Cotichelli Gallery in Buffalo, New York, produced with access to equipment from the Electrical Engineering Department at the State University of Buffalo.[2] Writing in The Buffalo News, art critic Jean Reeves described the works as "mysterious, illusionistic," adding that they were "almost like surrealistic paintings in three dimensions" and expressing a desire to see more of them by the artist.[2]
During this period, he married a Chinese woman named Mee Din and they had a son, Ian.[1] Castronovo and his family later returned to New York, where he became engaged with the downtown art scene of the late 1970s.[1]