FOLCO ROMANELLI (1952)

Folco Romanelli was born in Great Britain in 1952. He descended from artists on both sides of his family, for on his father’s side there had been Pasquale, his great, great grandfather, Raffaello, his great grandfather, and then is grandfather Romano Romanelli, all internationally renowned sculptors of their time. On his mothers’ side both his grandparents were painters and book illustrators, and his mother is also a book illustrator and musician. Folco was torn between his passion for art and his interest in science, but he decided to choose the Faculty of Biology at Florence University. Then, for family reasons, Folco became unavoidably involved in administrating the historic Sculpture Gallery in Florence for his father. The Gallery had been founded in 1860 by Pasquale Romanelli. Folco’s task of supervising artists then working for the Gallery awoke in him finally a strong vacation of his own to sculpt. From 1995 Folco dedicated himself entirely to sculpting. In 1997 he took part, with several works, in an important exhibition of “The Principale Tuscan Sculptors of the Twentieth Century”. Folco has had some of his works exhibited in Paris in 1998, and again in 1999 at the Port de Versailles, also at Verona in 1999. Amongst sculptures of Folcos’ placed in public places internationally are his “Girl on a Swing” outside the Theatre of Saint Louis, Usa, his bust of Ivor Novello infant of the church of Redroofs in Sussex, GB and his “Thinker”, in a park omg the Island of Cefalonia. Folco already has several pieces in private collections, amongst which “Laura” in the Chateau de la Faire in the Loire Gallery, France, a life size horse in bronze, in a garden in Puglia, Italy, an Eagle, whit a wing span of eight feet, at a Chateau in Switzerland, a life size, seated figure of a boy in bronze, “Pan playing Pipes”, designed and commissioned for the garden at Mardon in GB, and “Jennifer” a similare sixes figure in bronze, of a girl dancing, also made for the garden at Mardon GB. Then there is another life-size bronze of a rampant horse Folco made for a Horse Stud in Kuwait and a one-and-a-half times life size, standing figure ion marble of Prince Otumba Balagun to stand outside the Princes’ residence in Lagos.

OPERE