Enzo Plazzotta was born in Mestre, Italy in 1921 and studied at the Accademia di Brera in Milan. On graduating, he travelled to London to present a statuette to the British Special Forces Club commissioned by the Italian Committee of Liberation. He was so drawn to the British way of life that he decided to stay; becoming famous for his large-scale bronzes of dancers and horses, he received many public commissions and his sculptures continue to adorn London's cityscape.
Sculptor Enzo Plazzotta was born in Mestre, near Venice, Italy on 29 May 1921 and grew up on the shores of Lake Maggiore. Developing a particular aptitude for sculpture, he began to study under Francesco Messina at the Brera Academy in Milan, at the age of seventeen. However, he had to terminate his studies abruptly when Italy entered the Second World War. He was sent to North Africa, where he was awarded the Silver Medal for valour. Following the fall of Mussolini in 1943, Plazzotta broke with the Fascist regime and helped to found a partisan group in the Italian mountains. Betrayed by an infiltrator, he was captured and placed in solitary confinement, escaping six months later while in transit to Mauthausen concentration camp.
Plazzotta was eventually able to return to the Brera Academy to complete his studies under renowned sculptor Giacomo Manzù, who exerted a considerable influence over his work. On graduating, he received a commission from the Italian Committee of Liberation to make a bronze statuette for presentation to the British Special Forces Club in London. This work, entitled The Spirit of Rebellion, represented the young David with the head of Goliath. In 1946 Plazzotta travelled to London himself to present the statuette. This proved to be a major turning point in his career as a sculptor; particularly liking the English and the freedom of political thought in England, he decided to settle permanently in Chelsea. He found work as a portrait artist but later, with a family to support, he was forced to turn to more lucrative pursuits. He set up a commercial art agency in London, specialising in importing Milanese art and design and it was not until the early 1960s that he found himself in a position to take up sculpting again. His first public commission, a memorial celebrating the 700th anniversary of the Battle of Lewes and the birth of English parliamentary democracy, was unveiled by the Duke of Norfolk in 1966. This large, helmet-like structure cast in aluminium bore a crown of reliefs depicting various episodes of the battle. In 1967, inspired by Royal Ballet dancer Nadia Nerina, he began a series of bronzes exploring the theme of dance, followed by several sculptures of Rudolf Nureyev, which were widely acclaimed, and two studies of actress Vanessa Redgrave in her role as Isadora Duncan. He developed this subject in 1969, working on several sculptures of a young girl dancer, trained by the Martha Graham ballet, characterised by an astonishing sense of movement and tension in exaggerated dance forms. With his studies of leading classical ballet dancers, Margot Fonteyn, Antoinette Sibley, and Anthony Dowell, he further challenged the capabilities of bronze, capturing an instant of stillness amid motion or freezing energy in mid-air, as exemplified by ,em>Jeté, in which he immortalised dancer David Wall. The sculpture is now sited next to the Tate Britain on London's Millbank. Among his most successful portraits, away from the world of dance, were that of actor Peter Ustinov and Cubist sculptor Jacques Lipschitz. Plazzotta was also known for his series of bronze horses in action, which led to commissioned work of famous racehorses, such as Red Rum, multiple winner of the Grand National and a people's favourite. He also adapted classical and Biblical themes, and in 1974 he completed The Crucifixion for the Anglican Order of Franciscans, an unusual composition which shows Christ in intimate physical contact with the crucified bandits on either side of him, in such a way that his arms on the cross seem to hold up their bodies as well. The group is now placed in Westminster Abbey's College Garden.
While based in London Plazzotta continued to return to his native Italy and eventually established a studio near the Carrara quarry in Tuscany in 1967, where he continued to cast his bronze sculptures alongside experiments in marble and onyx carving. In 1976 he received the title of Cavaliere from the Italian government for services to art. In the same year he moved into the Garden Studio in Cathcart Road in Chlesea, built and formerly owned by Sir Charles Wheeler. Enzo Plazzotta died at Westminster Hospital, London, England on 12 October 1981. His work is represented in the National Portrait Gallery London and University of Dundee Art Collection, among other UK public collections, and can be seen in numerous sites across London.
Consult items in the Ben Uri archive related to [Enzo Plazzotta]
Publications related to [Enzo Plazzotta] in the Ben Uri Library