About

NORBERTO SPINA
One of the concept that I aim to express with my art is /periphery/. Periphery through time, as in being forgotten, and through space, as in being lost. But, most importantly, periphery, in relation to human social life. In big cities, the identity of the individual can be nullified by anonymity and lack of purpose. However, I take this to be a mirror of the contemporary urban lifestyle, in which every element has its own peculiar nature, its own interiority, which sometimes leads to a sense of revelation.
The pictorial practice I developed helps me to communicate what I see, feel and believe through the idea of generating abstractions both pictorial and plastic, deeply rooted in to reality. My work is created in two main steps: layering, summing up paints, recovery materials, images or codes and then subtraction, which originates from scratching with blunt objects and abrasive cards, trampling and consuming the surface of my canvases. This process is often a long and suffered path, where I bring the canvas to its own limits: it cuts, injures and becomes scarred. This allows me work the canvas any time differently and uniquely.
I’m working on different topics at the moment. First of all, the concept of wound as the result of the long process of sum and subtraction; second the concept of physical and human periphery both in the materials, residues, utensils and objects I use to paint, and in the subjects I represent while drawing; third the impact of time on things and people; finally the idea of stasis, paralysis and abandonment.
Education
2021 – 2023 Residency at the Royal Accademy of Arts, London
2014 – 2017 Accademical Degree in painting at the Brera Accademy, Milano, Italy
2016 – 2017 Erasmus at the Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Exhibitions
2021
– October, residency “Impronte“, Giacomo Lercarco Foundation, Bologna
2020
– June, residency “Percorsi di riavvicinamento”, Santuario della Verna
– February, group show “Frammenti di storia” with the finalists of the “San Fedele Art Prize” San Fedele Foundation, Milano
2019
– December, group show and third prize of the “San Fedele Art Prize” San Fedele Foundation, Milano
– March, group show “Poetiche a Confornto”, MO.CA, Brescia
– February/ April, residency at San Fedele Foundation, Milano
2018
– October, group show winners “X Premio Nocivelli”, Accademy of Fine Arts Santa Giulia, Brescia
– September, winner of the second prize in the group show “X Premio Nocivelli”, Verolanuova, Brescia
2017
– November, finalist of the Biennal RomArt, Stadio di Domiziano, Roma
2016
– November, group show “Via Panizza 4 – INEDITI”, Via Panizza 4, Milano
– November, finalist “Premio Arte 2016”, Palazzo Reale, Milano
– October, group show “Street dreams”, Courtfield Garden, Londra
– June, group show “Sketch”, Pisacane Arte Gallery, Milano
2015
– Novembre, personale “NOBA WALLS X OREA MA LIA’”, Orea Malià, Milano
Publications
2021
IMPRONTE – Intervista agli artisti, atto I | Raccolta Lercaro
Interneu W/ Norberto Spina
Intervista a Norberto Spina – Progetto IMPRONTE 2020
Norberto Spina: Il mio mondo, tra murales e pagine di sketchbook – MeloBox
IMPRONTE – Fondazione Lercaro
Impronte. Alla Fondazione Lercaro lavori in corso per artisti under 30 – Juliet Art Magazine
IMPRONTE. Giovani Artisti in Residenza | Espoarte
Percorsi di Riavvicinamento 2022 || Devotio
2020
L’ultima ruota del carro – Nocsensei.com
Un libro fotografico speciale – Fotografia.it
Ultima Ruota Del Carro – Spina Norberto | Libro 11/2020 – HOEPLI.it
Presente 2020 – Palazzo delle Esposizioni
Frammenti di Storia – Arte.it
Norberto Spina – Artconnect.com
Frammenti di Storia – Gabriele Salvaterra
Presente 2020 – Scomodo
Norberto Spina interview – Gabriele Brambilla
Grazie Norbeto -Amici della Zizzi Street Art
Video reportage “The Urban Artist” – Teresa Zavattiero
2019
Martin Award – Fondazione Carlo Maria Martini
Mostra “Identità, Natura e destino” – La Repubblica
Premio San Fedele 2018/2019 – Frammenti di storia
Martini Award – ChiesadiMilano
Frammenti di Storia – Segnonline
2018
Premio Artivisive San Fedele 2018/19 – Centro San Fedele
Identità, Natura e destino – Catalogo della mostra