Costantino Proietto (1910-1979) Painted Scenes of Locarno/Ascona at Lago Maggiore, Switzerland - 2013

 

Costantino Proietto (1910-1979) Painted Scenes of Locarno/Ascona at Lago Maggiore, Switzerland

Recently, Ms. Dawn Allen of Greensboro, North Carolina wrote to me about her mother’s two Costantino Proietto (1910-1979) original oil paintings. Similar to other recent C.Proietto painting discoveries, Dawn’s parents acquired the pair while living in Germany during the early 1950s.

Her father, Joseph Edgar Allen, was a Master Sergeant in the U.S. Army, stationed at Wallace Barracks in the Bad Cannstatt district of Stuttgart,  Germany. Dawn recalled, “My father was part of the 66th Counter Intelligence Corps Group (CIC), which used the Wallace Barracks installation during the 1950s. Although called a barracks, according to my mother there was no on-base housing”.

She went on to say, “They lived in an apartment through ‘German requisition housing’ at Saarstraße 13 E, . Some regular German apartment complexes were designated for U.S. military. My mother, Mary Alice Allen recalls one side of the street being for U.S. military, with German citizens living across the street. After his first deployment to Stuttgart, he went to Fort Holabird in Baltimore, Maryland and then back to Stuttgart. They purchased both paintings during his first tour in Stuttgart”.

One day in 1953, Mr. Costantino Proietto knocked on their door, selling his artwork. They purchased a single oil painting, later buying another. The paintings hung in her parents’ apartment in Germany and then traveled to Baltimore Maryland. When Ed Allen retired, the couple moved to Brevard, North Carolina, where both paintings continue hanging in the Allen home.

Dawn Allen continued, “I’ve attached photos of the two oil paintings, plus two receipts for purchase of the paintings, which my mother had kept all these years. The old photos include one of a C.Proietto painting hanging in their German apartment. Another is of my father at that time, including the same painting hanging on their wall. During a recent visit to her house, my eighty-eight year old mother suggested that we “Google” the artist’s name. It was then that we found the information on your website”.

From family photos, Dawn Allen determined that the first of her mother’s paintings was purchased in 1953 and the other in 1954. Despite her age and sixty years gone by, Mary Alice Allen knew exactly where to find the original receipts for the paintings. She recalls that they purchased each painting at a different time. Each time, Mr. Proietto traveled about seven kilometers to the Allen's apartment. Although they did not specifically ask him to return, a few months later Costantino Proietto called again, with more paintings to offer.

What Dawn Allen calls the “Steeple Painting” has an artist’s inscription on the back. It reads, “Lago Maggiore, Locarno, Sv, Ytaliana”. From the inscription, I believe the painting depicts Locarno, Switzerland, including a southern view toward Italy, which is on the far bank of Lago Maggiore. An extensive search of images on the internet does not produce a photograph of that particular steeple, or tower. However, my own original Costantino Proietto oil painting of “Lago Maggiore, Ascona” (bottom of page) depicts a rowboat identical to the one in the Allen Family “Steeple Painting”.

The second Allen Family C.Proietto is harder to place. With no inscription on the back and no mention of subject matter on the receipt, it could be of any Swiss or Italian lake. However, there is one clue that might help place the location of the “Lake House” (above), as the Allen family calls the painting. Immediately after the initial publication of this article, C.Proietto collector Jeffrey Muenker sent me a photo of his own "Lake House" painting (left). Both the Allen Family "Lake House" and the Muenker Family painting appear to have used the same photo as their origin. There are subtle differences, including the absence of a lower window and the addition of a flowering plant on the Muenker Family painting.

Each C. Proietto acquisition story is unique, although many center on American GIs stationed in postwar Germany, and mostly near Stuttgart. The impeccable provenance of the Allen Family C.Proietto paintings is peerless. The receipts pictured here are the first known sales documents created by the artist. Written in Costantino Proietto’s hand and signed by the purchaser, J.E. Allen, they offer some interesting details about the purchases.

The receipt on the left shows a date of “8-10”, indicating final payment (and delivery?) in August or October 1953. It reads, “1 oil painting - DM 200", with 50% down and two additional payments of DM 50. In pencil, at the bottom, the receipt is marked, “Paid”. The other receipt was for DM 115, and paid in full on January 4, 1954 or April 1, 1954, depending on the use of American or European date standards. There is no mention of framing, but Mary Alice Allen tells us that both were sold in identical frames. Most C.Proietto paintings were sold unframed.

At the top of each receipt is a rubber-stamped impression, including the artist’s name and address. Also appearing is the German word, “Kunstmaler”, meaning “Production Painter”, when translated into English. As an Italian, living in Germany during the 1950’s, the artist also included the words, “artista pittoro", loosely translated as “picture artist”.

Despite his skill and expertise, Costantino Proietto painted for the people, often selling his paintings door-to-door or at U.S. Post Exchange exhibitions throughout postwar Germany. The good news for C.Proietto collectors is that there are perhaps thousands of his works hanging undiscovered on walls all over the world.

Proving what a small world we live in, Dawn Allen finished her email to me with the following. “I have seen these two painting hanging on walls all my life. I noticed one of your articles about a person with a C.Proietto painting mentioned a ‘Marion Fortune of Brevard, NC’, who passed away in 2012, willing her prized C.Proietto painting to a niece. My mother, who also lives in Brevard, remembers Ms. Fortune as someone who worked for the local veterinarian, Dr. McPherson. If only Marion and my mother had talked about their Proietto paintings!”

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By James McGillis at 06:13 PM | Fine Art | Comments (2) | Link

The Author Purchases a Mysterious "Villa di Lago" C.Proietto Original Oil Painting - 2012

 

The Author Purchases a Mysterious "Villa di Lago" C.Proietto Original Oil Painting

In June 2012, I acquired a previously unknown oil painting by the Italian artist, Costantino Proietto (1910–1979). As soon as my new painting arrived, I shared pictures and descriptions of it on this website. The painting is of the Tiber River and St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, Italy. Angled gracefully into the scene are the Castel Sant’Angelo and its attendant bridge, the Ponte Sant’Angelo. In addition, a statue of Archangel Michael unsheathes his mighty sword atop the castle.
 
Soon after publishing that article, I received an email from yet another owner of a C.Proietto painting. Mr. Craig Casey of San Diego had acquired his painting at a friend's moving sale. From images of both the front and back, I was able to study the Casey painting. Although the age of the painting soon became apparent, I could not determine the scene’s geographical location. Knowing that the artist painted real scenes, I searched both my C.Proietto archives and internet photos of Swiss and Italian lakeside villages.
 
During my search, I found only one C.Proietto image similar to the Casey painting. Both paintings featured large, wide-angle views of lakeside villages. The archive painting has a handwritten label, perhaps by the artist. It reads, “Lago di Lugano Gandria”, which translates in English to, “Gandria Village, Lake Lugano”, Switzerland.

After viewing hundreds of Gandria Village photos on the internet, I found that the Casey "Villa di Lago" painting was not a match. Although the artist had painted scenes of Lago di Como, Lago Maggiore and Lago di Lugano, I could not place the Casey painting at any such location. Here, I ask for help from any reader who recognizes this lakeside scene. Please comment below or send an email with geographical candidates for this C.Proietto painting. I will be happy to credit whoever first helps to solve my C. Proietto location mystery.
 
The Casey C.Proietto is a moderately large example of the artist’s work. Most C.Proietto paintings have an aspect ratio of 4:3. Not surprisingly, that ratio is close to that of 35-mm film (4.11:3), from which the artist worked. Originally, the Casey painting was 40” x 20”. During an earlier reconditioning of the piece, someone used shorter, 38” Grumbacher stretcher bars. That action reduced the visible width of the painting by almost two inches, partially obscuring the “C” in the artist’s “C.Proietto” signature.
 
This wide aspect ratio is a clue to the age of the Casey C.Proietto. By 1956, Cinemascope and Panavision lenses, with aspect ratios of almost 2:1 had influenced all the visual arts. Instead of tall, boxy layouts, new paintings, live stages and movies began retooling toward wider, horizontal formats. During his 1957 visit to Southern California, the artist may have viewed wide-screen movies and other examples of this trend. In addition to its wide angle view, the entire composition has a left-standing perspective. Rather than a vanishing point in the center of the scene, we look from left to right and then to the far shore to see the painting as the artist intended.
 
By mid-century, C.Proietto had painted hundreds, if not thousands of original compositions. Thanks to Mr. Casey’s clear photography, we can see many details of the artist’s work. As testament to the Proietto’s technique, many flourishes of his palette knife still stand in raised relief. Over one half century after creation, small waves of paint still curl and shine. After World War II, the reintroduction of foreign trade brought brighter, more durable paints to Proietto’s studio in Stuttgart, Germany. The high quality paint in this piece again indicates a late 1950’s date of origin.
 
On the back of the canvas is another clue to the age of this painting. Still showing traces of the artist’s wax seal, a printed tag adheres to the back of the canvas. First utilized by the artist in the 1950’s, printed tags, seals and the occasional “Certificate of Authenticity” point again to a date of 1957 or later.
 
Translated from German to English, the printed tag reads: “Proietto, Costantino, born in Catania, Sicily, was pupil of Prof. Fernando Cappuccio of the Academy of Florence, has had exhibitions in Palermo, Naples, Rome, Lugano, Stockholm, Stuttgart, Dresden, Los Angeles, Hollywood and New York.”
 
In 1957, Costantino Proietto visited the U.S., spending time with American cousins on either coast. During that trip, he completed his U.S. gallery representation, including exhibitions in New York, Los Angeles and Hollywood. With its mention of Los Angeles and Hollywood, this tag points to a date of origin in 1957, or later.
 
On all of his printed tags, Proietto gave credit to his teacher, “Prof. Fernando Cappuccio” of the Academy of Art, in Florence, Italy.

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By James McGillis at 05:19 PM | Fine Art | Comments (0) | Link

Costantino Proietto - A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man - 2012

 

Costantino Proietto - A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

In July 2011, I published my first article regarding the Italian artist Costantino Proietto (1910-1979). Other than the signature “C.Proietto” on our own original oil painting, I then knew nothing about this modern Italian impressionist. At that time, I published pictures of our Amalfi Coast painting, asking other owners of C.Proietto paintings to share them with our world and me. Soon, several individuals in the U.S. came forward with photographs of their own treasured C.Proietto masterpieces. U.S. soldiers stationed near Stuttgart, Germany purchased each of those initial paintings there.

Some people would write and promise to send pictures, but never deliver. One man sent stories about his family’s close relationship to Costantino Proietto, who they called “Uncle Tino”. There was a story about a dark painting designed not to hurt the eyes of a young measles patient. At the Sistine Chapel in Rome, using real gold leaf, Tino had painted an image of the Madonna. I had only one unconfirmed photographic image of a balding man in his mid to late sixties. If that picture was of Costantino Proietto, I could not prove it. Now, I believe it to be a later image of the man.

In March 2012, I received letters from two relatives of Costantino Proietto, each of whom knew the artist in life. With their stories, Larry LoCastro, second cousin, and Nunzio LoCastro, first cousin of Costantino Proietto brought life to the artist and the man. Within the LoCastro family in New Jersey, there are almost a dozen signed original oil paintings attributed to the artist. Although there are too many new paintings to show them all here, I will post the remaining works in later articles.

Nunzio LoCastro is now eighty-five years old. In 1951, U.S. Army service took him to Germany for two years. Before shipping out, his father told Nunzio to look up a cousin who lived in Germany. That cousin, an Italian emigrant to Stuttgart, Germany was the forty-one year old Costantino Proietto. Having settled in Stuttgart near the beginning of World War II, C.Proietto quickly established himself there. By the early 1950s, he painted at his own atelier/studio, located at the fashionable address, Stuttgart-S. Danneckerstraße 34.

Through the wonders of Google Street View, we can see that building as it looks like today. According to one person who photographed it, in 1899 architect Gottlob Schäufelin finished the mehrfamilienhaus (multifamily property), which later housed C.Proietto’s studio. In describing the studio, Nunzio LoCastro told me that it was had one large room with many windows. According to Nunzio LoCastro, Tino painted on the first floor of that building.

According to Nunzio, Tino lived with his common law wife Gisela at Stuttgart-S. Hohenheimer Straße 62. There we see a four-story apartment building, which dates to the prewar era. Again, with the aid of Google Maps, we can see that his home and studio were only two hundred thirty meters apart. Every day, Tino would rise early, have a cup of black coffee and then walk to his studio. There, he would paint until noon and then return home for lunch with Gisela. After a leisurely lunch, Tino would don a freshly ironed shirt and return to his studio.

Painting there until the sunlight failed, Tino would then go out on the town, enjoying whatever nightlife postwar Stuttgart had to offer. During his evening activities, Gisela was at home. By then, Tino had come to expect a spotless house and two freshly washed and ironed shirts each day. Since he often worked seven days a week, I imagine Gisela at their apartment boiling, washing and ironing shirts well into the night. Although many artists wear a smock, Costantino created his masterpieces while wearing a dress shirt. After work he was still impeccably dressed for a night on the town. With his signature palette knife work, C.Proietto brought elegance, skill and exactitude to his work. For him, creating modern impressionist masterworks in a dirty shirt was unacceptable.

The business card of Costantino Proietto, as displayed on this page, tells us how the man saw himself. On the card, “Costantino Proietto” appears in bold script. The top two entries on his list are in English. First is “Oil Paintings”, followed by “Specialist in spaddle work”. Next, in his native Italian, is “Artista pittore”, meaning “painter of pictures”. In a nod to the French, he follows with “Artist peintre”. Finally, for his host country, Germany he lists “Kunstmaler”, meaning artist, painter or “production painter”.

In less than one year, Costantino Proietto and his works have gone from obscurity to fame. Soon, I expect him to be among the most collectable of twentieth century painters. We can now confirm Randazzo, Sicily 1910 as his place and year of birth. We know that at age fourteen he began an eighteen year unpaid apprenticeship to a master Italian artist and art restorer. In his early thirties, C.Proietto immigrated to France, and then to Switzerland. By 1942, he had settled for good in Stuttgart, Germany. By 1951, he had a studio and a nearby apartment home. According to his cousin Nunzio LoCastro, every day, Tino Proietto lived the good life, traveling, photographing and painting exquisite pictures of scenes that people loved. Any observer of an original painting by C.Proietto can see and feel his joy in life shine through.

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By James McGillis at 10:58 AM | Fine Art | Comments (0) | Link