Charles Fazzino
Encyclopedia
Charles Fazzino is an American pop artist. An innovator in the 3D pop art style, his work is exhibited in hundreds of fine art galleries worldwide. Born in 1955, Charles Fazzino is the son of a Finnish sculptor (Irene) and an Italian mode shoe designer (Salvatore). He took his first formal art class as a 7th grader in 1967 and had his first solo art exhibition at Pelham High School in 1968. He often accompanied his mother to the arts and crafts shows in which she exhibited and in 1971, he put up his own display at the Bedford Hills Outdoor Arts Show, the first time he exhibited for the general public.
He attended the School of Visual Arts
in Manhattan
and graduated with his bachelor of arts in 1977. Today, his unique, three-dimensional fine art prints and originals are sold and exhibited in hundreds of galleries and museums in more than twenty different countries around the world. He has been commissioned to create artwork for high profile events such as The Super Bowl
, The GRAMMY Awards, The Pori Jazz
Festival, Major League Baseball All-Star Game
, Daytime Emmy Awards, and more.
Sometimes referred to as a pop culture historian, Fazzino has stated on numerous occasions and in many ways that his intent as an artist is to create a body of work that reflects the highlights of popular culture back to his audience, reminding them of who they are, where they come from, and what moves them as human beings. He once wrote "...all of my art is a labor of love for all of you who have enjoyed my work for so long. When we're all gone and many years have passed, I hope that our descendants will look at one of my paintings and say 'that's a Fazzino. He was that artist who painted those zany pictures of what life was really like back then'"
In 1980, while exhibiting in the juried arts fairs in Florida, Charles Fazzino attended a 3-D paper tole class in an arts supply store. He experimented with the technique and showed his first three-dimensional print at the Greenwich Village Art Show in New York City
in May, 1980.
Fazzino entered the gallery circuit when he sold his first 3-D offset lithographs to a gallery in Michigan. He began using the silkscreen printing process in 1986.
2. The printer returns the outline to Charles Fazzino for adjustment and color indication.
3. Chromists interpret Charles Fazzino's original color scheme onto a series of screens and the color mixer matches the colors to Fazzino's original painting.
4. Each screen is placed on the printing press during which time the appropriate color ink is pushed through to the paper. The final image appears as each color is laid down on the paper. The order in which the colors are laid down determines the blends and effects that result in the final print.
5. The original image is printed both on 100% rag 2-ply or 4-ply museum board and on 100% rag 1-ply sheets. The elements of the image are cut out of the 1-ply sheets by hand using an exacto knife. The cutouts are carefully layered on top of the boards using a silicone material and resulting in a multi-layered image. The final stage involves the embellishment of each image with acrylic paint glitter and sometimes crystals.
He attended the School of Visual Arts
School of Visual Arts
The School of Visual Arts , is a proprietary art school located in Manhattan, New York City, and is widely considered to be one of the leading art schools in the United States. It was established in 1947 by co-founders Silas H. Rhodes and Burne Hogarth as the Cartoonists and Illustrators School and...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
and graduated with his bachelor of arts in 1977. Today, his unique, three-dimensional fine art prints and originals are sold and exhibited in hundreds of galleries and museums in more than twenty different countries around the world. He has been commissioned to create artwork for high profile events such as The Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
, The GRAMMY Awards, The Pori Jazz
Pori Jazz
Pori Jazz is a large international jazz festival, held annually in the coastal city of Pori , Finland. It is one of the oldest and best known jazz festivals in Europe, having been arranged every year since 1966...
Festival, Major League Baseball All-Star Game
Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual baseball game between players from the National League and the American League, currently selected by a combination of fans, players, coaches, and managers...
, Daytime Emmy Awards, and more.
Sometimes referred to as a pop culture historian, Fazzino has stated on numerous occasions and in many ways that his intent as an artist is to create a body of work that reflects the highlights of popular culture back to his audience, reminding them of who they are, where they come from, and what moves them as human beings. He once wrote "...all of my art is a labor of love for all of you who have enjoyed my work for so long. When we're all gone and many years have passed, I hope that our descendants will look at one of my paintings and say 'that's a Fazzino. He was that artist who painted those zany pictures of what life was really like back then'"
Artistic Technique
Charles Fazzino is most well-known for the three-dimensionality of his limited edition silkscreen serigraphs.In 1980, while exhibiting in the juried arts fairs in Florida, Charles Fazzino attended a 3-D paper tole class in an arts supply store. He experimented with the technique and showed his first three-dimensional print at the Greenwich Village Art Show in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in May, 1980.
Fazzino entered the gallery circuit when he sold his first 3-D offset lithographs to a gallery in Michigan. He began using the silkscreen printing process in 1986.
The 3-D Process
1. Charles Fazzino sends his original line art to the silkscreen printer who then traces the line art onto a piece of mylar to create the black line screen. The printer pushes black ink through the screen to print the outline of the image onto paper.2. The printer returns the outline to Charles Fazzino for adjustment and color indication.
3. Chromists interpret Charles Fazzino's original color scheme onto a series of screens and the color mixer matches the colors to Fazzino's original painting.
4. Each screen is placed on the printing press during which time the appropriate color ink is pushed through to the paper. The final image appears as each color is laid down on the paper. The order in which the colors are laid down determines the blends and effects that result in the final print.
5. The original image is printed both on 100% rag 2-ply or 4-ply museum board and on 100% rag 1-ply sheets. The elements of the image are cut out of the 1-ply sheets by hand using an exacto knife. The cutouts are carefully layered on top of the boards using a silicone material and resulting in a multi-layered image. The final stage involves the embellishment of each image with acrylic paint glitter and sometimes crystals.