The artist seems to be looking for an absolute, an essence, an entelechy that, in the work, grows reality, does not merely reproduce it.
It’s more. Ventrone is the painter of hyperbole. And his works are hyperbolic, exaggerated and baroque, not hyperrealistic. A great illusion…
Vittorio Sgarbi

The Caravaggio of the 20th century
(Federico Zeri)

Luciano Ventrone was one of the greatest modern Roman artists.
Born in 1942, he is the classic enfant prodige, who already showed his innate talent for painting while attending art school in Rome.
These were the golden years of the Roman school and Ventrone was taught by none other than artists such as Giuseppe Capogrossi (Rome 1899-1972) and Giulio Turcato (Mantua 1912 – Rome 1995).

After a few years of studying at the Faculty of Architecture, he began his artistic career in a professional manner.
We know that the turning point in his career was in the 1980s, when he met Federico Zeri, who encouraged him to paint still lifes, which would become his signature work.

The great Italian critic was so enchanted by his painting that he considered Luciano Ventrone the Caravaggio of the twentieth century. This was the beginning of an artistic journey that has made the Roman artist one of the most appreciated Italian painters in Italy and all over the world.

He died in April 16th 2021.