Luigi Boille (1926-2015)

Born in Pordenone, Italy in 1926, Luigi Boille was an Italian artist who trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome. After moving to Paris in 1950, he became associated with the nascent Art Informel movement, inspired by the writings of the influential French critic Michel Tapié. He was represented by the renowned Galerie Stadler in Paris for nearly 15 years, which he was the peak of his artistic output.

His association with Stadler and Tapié paid huge dividends for Boille during the 1960s. He showed in important exhibitions ranging from North America to Asia. In 1964, together with Giuseppe Capogrossi, Enrico Castellani, and Lucio Fontana, he represented Italy at the Guggenheim International Award in New York. He also participated in the Quadriennale in Rome in 1965 and 2011, and had a solo presentation of paintings at the 33rd Venice Biennale of Art in 1966.

Since the major retrospective Luoghi di luce, scritture del silenzio, held at the Musei di Villa Torlonia in Rome in 2019, Boille's work has been the subject of renewed interest by some of the most esteemed galleries in the world. Ronchini Gallery, London, presented a solo exhibition of his work at Frieze Masters 2021, followed in 2023 by a major exhibition held in London, Luigi Boille: Early Works. Earlier in the year, Boille was part of the seminal exhibition Roma/New York, 1953-1964, presented by David Zwirner in New York. That exhibition included some of the most significant names in 20th century art: Willem de Kooning, Philip Guston, Franz Kline, Robert Rauschenberg, Mark Tobey, and Cy Twombly, among others.

Luigi Boille died in Rome in 2015. His work can be found in many significant public and private collections around the world, including the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington; the National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art, Rome; MAM Paris; and MACRO, Rome.

Sources: Archivio Luigi Boille and Ronchini Gallery, London