AUGUSTO CANTAMESSA

Biography

Augusto Cantamessa (Turin 1927 –Bibiana 2018) was an Italian photographer. He discovered his passion for photography at a young age and became a member of the Società Fotografica Subalpina, where he learned from renowned photographers in Turin.
Cantamessa’s photographs are recognized internationally, he was awarded the title of Artiste de la FIAP (AFIAP) by the Federation Internationale de l’Art Photographique in 1957. His works are included in the collections of several prestigious institutions, including the Bibliothèque Nationale de France and the Fondazione 3M.
Selected solo and group exhibitions: Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, the Keith De Lellis Gallery (New York), Musée de l’Elysée (Switzerland), a retrospective of his work was held at the Galleria FIAF in Turin in 2017 to celebrate his 90th birthday, “Augusto Cantamessa f8/1:200” (2019, Palazzo Castiglioni, Milan), “Fotografia a Torino. Dal dopoguerra al boom economico” organized by the Association for Historical Photography (Villa Amoretti Civic Library, Turin). His piece “Breve Orizzonte, 1955” was showcased in the exhibition “La bellezza delle linee. Fotografie della collezione Gilman e González-Falla” at the Photo Colectania Foundation in Barcelona. Some of his works were acquired by the Guido Bertero Collection.In 2018, he was honored with the highest recognition in Italian photography, Maestro della Fotografia Italiana (MFI). In 2020, to mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Piedmont Region, Cantamessa participated in commemorative events with the exhibition “Augusto Cantamessa – Atmosfere Piemontesi” at the Carla Spagnuolo Gallery in Palazzo Lascaris, Turin; also included in the exhibition “Memoria e passione. Da Capa a Ghirri. Capolavori della Collezione Bertero” at CAMERA – Italian Center for Photography, Turin.
Photo Art Fairs: Artissima 2021 (in collaboration with the Archivio Augusto Cantamessa and Podbielski Contemporary), The Others 2022, Photo London 2023, The Phair 2024,

Images