Roberto Giordani
Is an Italian sculptor whose practice inhabits the rupture between geological time and anthropic action. Through a visual language that interrogates the cultural, environmental, and historical implications of matter, Giordani investigates the transformative tension of humanity on Earth, contrasting mineral persistence with the irreversible agency of heat.
His artistic evolution is rooted in an early, visceral connection with the elements, developed within a profound familiarity with the plasticity of metals. His formal language was significantly refined in Florence during the late 1980s: by frequenting the studio of sculptor Vincenzo Gasperetti, Chair of Sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts, he mastered the canons of monumental sculpture and a brutal dialogue with matter. Equally decisive was his immersion in the artistic circles of Toni Benetton, from whom he drew the inspiration to elevate iron into a medium of avant-garde sculpture.
In 1998, he initiated a definitive conceptual shift: matter ceased to be a functional tool and became a "witness to be interrogated." Since 2004, Giordani has definitively transcended the technical dimension to dedicate himself exclusively to pure artistic inquiry. In this transition, fire evolved from an operational tool into an agent of conceptual transformation: a temporal accelerator capable of deforming the original memory of objects.
His multifaceted practice integrates ceramics, stone, and reclaimed artifacts in a continuous analysis of the Anthropocene. With over twenty years of international teaching experience, Giordani has seen his work acquired by major public and museum collections, as well as prestigious heritage sites worldwide—including locations in Taiwan, Thailand, Australia, England, Spain, Belgium, Germany, Sweden, Morocco, and the United States.
ABOUT
Artistic Chronology (Selected Events)
2025
- Solo exhibition The other side - Chronicles of Matter (Cronache della Materia), Castello dei Conti Guidi, Poppi (Arezzo, Italy). Focus on the dialogue between natural time and anthropic impetus.
2023
- Visiting Artist and Masterclass, National Tainan University of Technology (TUT), Taiwan.
- Site-specific sculpture Oriental Beauty, Hsinchu Public Park, Taiwan, commissioned for the Hsinchu Light Festival.
- Commemorative sculpture Equilibrium, commissioned for the Centenary of Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University (NRRU), Korat, Thailand.
2022
- Monumental sculpture Transformation, historic center of Ybbsitz, Austria (UNESCO site). The work was subsequently acquired by the FeRRUM Museum.
2020 – 2021
- Exhibition cycle Restarting from the Rivers (Ripartiamo dai Fiumi), exhibited at the Historical Archives of Palermo, the Palazzo della Provincia di Forlì, and the Legislative Assembly of Emilia-Romagna, Bologna.
2018
- Permanent installation Decomposing (Decomponersi), Port Macquarie, Australia; followed by a series of lectures in Sydney.
- Faculty member, Penland School of Crafts, North Carolina, USA.
- Acquisition of the work Mississippi Decompose by the Metal Museum of Memphis, USA.
2017
- Artistic Director of the Municipal Gallery of Bagno di Romagna (until 2021).
- Visiting Artist, Hereford College of Arts, United Kingdom.
- Solo exhibition aMareaMare, Maritime Museum of Cesenatico (FC, Italy).
2016
- Guest Speaker and Masterclass Instructor, ABANA Conference, Salt Lake City, and Center for Metal Arts, New York, USA.
2014
- Itinerant solo exhibition Percorso, historic center of Anghiari (AR, Italy).
2013
- Solo exhibition From Iron to Art (Dal Ferro all’Arte), Bagno di Romagna (FC, Italy).
- Solo exhibition The Plasticity of Iron (La Plasticità del Ferro), Sansepolcro (AR, Italy).
2012
- Group exhibition Brothers of Iron (Fratelli di Ferro – Modern Sculpture in Iron), Kolbermoor, Germany.
- Solo exhibition The Metamorphosis of Metal (La Metamorfosi del Metallo), Palazzo del Ridotto, Cesena (Italy).
2011
- Monumental work dedicated to Attilio Pavesi, Fiorenzuola d’Arda Velodrome (PC, Italy).
- Solo exhibition Fire Sculptures (Sculture di Fuoco), Helfštýn Castle (Czech Republic). The work Wolf was acquired for the permanent collection.
2010
- Acquisition of the work Contrapposto by the Maritime Museum of Barcelona, Spain.
- Solo exhibition Feu & Fer, Brussels, Belgium.
2009
- Group exhibition The Alchemy of Fire (L'Alchimia del Fuoco), Modern Art Gallery of Palazzo Forti, Verona.
2008
- Public monument Plautus’ Column (Colonna di Plauto), Sarsina (FC, Italy).
2007
- Group exhibition Living Iron (Vivere il Ferro), National Archaeological Museum of Parma.
2006
- Public Prize (3rd Place), Kiruna Snow Festival, Sweden, with the ice sculpture Meteora.
- Permanent installation Encounter of Energies (Střet energií), Helfštýn Castle Forum, Czech Republic.
- Monumental sculpture The Spine, Mercato Saraceno (FC, Italy).
2005
- First Prize, XVI European Forging Art, Stia (Italy), with the work Resurrection (Resurrezione). The sculpture was acquired by the Pontifical Collections, Vatican City.
2004
- Masterclass for the Development of Plastic Arts (CESVI), Chefchaouen, Morocco.
- Artistic Recognition Award, Prague, Czech Republic.
- First Prize, "Carlo Rizzarda" National Competition, Feltre (BL, Italy).
2003
- Public sculpture Heron (Airone), Mercato Saraceno (FC, Italy).
1999
- Collaborative sculpture Life (Vita), Città di Castello (PG, Italy).
1998
- Establishment of his independent studio: initiation of a research phase focused on the plastic transformation of iron and the mastery of fire as an expressive medium.