Augusto Cernigoj - Movimento Arte Concreta

Augusto (or Avgust) Cernigoj was born in Trieste in 1898, of Slovenian parentage. He studied at the Fine Art Academy of Bologna, and also at the Bauhaus, where he was the only Italian student. Augusto Cernigoj worked as a teacher at the Slovenian school in Trieste. The two works below were contributed to Documenti d'arte d'oggi, the journal of the Movimento Arte Concreta, in 1958. By happenstance, my copies have been hand-signed by Cernigoj in pen at the bottom right. Usual copies are unsigned.

Augusto Cernigoj
Untitled woodcut, 1958

Augusto Cernigoj
Untitled lithograph, 1958

The influence of Hans Arp can be seen in the lithograph, which is a very successful and balanced composition, in my view. Although he was a well-respected artist, the art of Cernigoj has only been truly appreciated after his death in 1985. More than 1400 pieces are gathered in the Galleria di Avgust Cernigoj in Lipizza.

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