Baigneuse aux nattes

Antoniucci Voltigero, known as Antoniucci Volti, was born on January 1, 1915 in Albano Laziale, Italy, and died on December 14, 1989 in Paris. The son of a professional stonemason, his father settled in Villefranche-sur-Mer in 1905, obtaining French naturalization. In 1928, Volti joined the School of Decorative Arts in Nice, which later became the Villa Arson.

After winning a gold medal at the Marseille fair in 1932, Volti enrolled at the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts in Paris, joining the workshop of Jean Boucher. He distinguished himself by obtaining the first second Grand Prix de Rome. Mobilized during the Second World War, his weakened health forced him to repatriate in March 1943. This ordeal marked a turning point in his work, symbolized by the adoption of the signature "Volti".

After the Liberation, Volti was entrusted with his first public orders, including the first for the city of Colombes. He devotes his career to creating monumental works, with the central theme of Woman, an inexhaustible source of inspiration for him: “What interests me is less woman than her architecture... It is in the body of the woman I draw my inspiration from. » Every day, he sketches living models, perpetuating a tradition dear to sculptors.

In 1950, Volti became a professor of wood sculpture at the School of Applied Arts in Paris. His growing fame led to the organization of a first retrospective of his work in 1957 in Paris. His sculptures adorn the squares of many cities, including Paris, Angers, Orléans, and Colombes. Concrete bas-reliefs signed Volti embellish the departures level of the Roissy 1 terminal. A museum-foundation, located in the citadel of Villefranche-sur-Mer where he always resided, is dedicated to him.

Antoniucci Volti's artistic legacy is in line with great sculptors such as Rodin, Bourdelle and Maillol. His life and work continue to inspire art lovers, testifying to his ability to transcend eras and celebrate the human form with timeless elegance.