Gaetano Barbarotto: love, sea, art and Sicily

Gaetano Barbarotto, aka Gaba, is an artist from Palermo who has shown passion in the art of drawing and painting since he was a child. He graduated at the School of Fine Arts of Palermo and after the experience at the studio of the painter Guido Quadrio, he moved to Milan and became part of Brera community, where he met some other masters including Giuseppe Migneco, Ernesto Treccani, Mario Bardi and Enzo Migneco aka Togo. In 2019 he was back to Palermo, where he met again many Sicilian artists and friends, and rediscovered the colors and the impetuous force of his own land. The sea and his desire to tell that charm made of waves and salt become central to his production. Sicilian Secrets interviewed him.

Gaetano Barbarotto
Gaetano Barbarotto

Q: How did your career in the art world begin?

A: My journey begins at the age of 7, when my parents realized that I was able to perfectly copy the representation of a fresco by Giotto in which Saint Francis appeared with animals. From that moment they understood that I wanted to be an artist, so I attended the School of Fine Arts, graduating as a Master of Art in metal arts, embossing, goldsmithing and sculpture. I continued my studies and subsequently moved on to architecture. Moving to Milan gave me the opportunity to be part of the art community of Brera.

Q: What is the fil rouge that connects Gaetano Barbarotto, your artworks and Sicily?

A: I love Sicily, all of it! The love for my land is immeasurable and the best thing I have done was to move back to Palermo after 43 years. Now I live and work here, the link that connects me most with Sicily is the ‘sea’. This is a theme that I have interpreted both from an ecological point of view, addressing the issue of ocean pollution, and as a fundamental element of life. Immersing yourself in these waters can give you a glimpse of an amazing panorama given to us by nature, an infinite underwater world made up of shapes, lights and colors to which I have dedicated a lot of artworks called ‘Wonders of the sea’.

Gaetano Barbarotto
Wonders of the sea (Meraviglie del mare)

Q: Are there any places on the island that inspire you?

A: Yes, there is a place near home that is magical for me. I started going there during the pandemic, I remember that every day, in the late afternoon, I used to sit on the beach and looking at the horizon, I got inspiration for the ‘Wonders of the sea’! They are medium-sized square-format material artworks that depict the scenery of an underwater world where fish, corals and algae reign, created to bring out the lights and colors that live in the depths of the seas of Sicily.

Q: Is there one of your artworks that you particularly like?

A: I am very attached to a painting exhibited during the Biennale d’Arte Contemporanea del Sacro BIAS 2020 at the Galleria del Loggiato di San Bartolomeo in Palermo. It is an artwork that depicts a child playing with a barbed wire entitled ‘Forbidden Games’…but both my wife and I, due to the mischievous face of the protagonist, call it ‘Birillo’. This work describes a social theme, it talks about the exploitation of children, in particular of child soldiers used for war and used also as an object for the world of pedophilia, a drama I have already portrayed some other times.

Forbidden Games (Birillo)

Q: What are the topics that we find most frequently in the artistic production of Gaetano Barbarotto?

A: They all belongs to the underwater world, it’s a passion that smells of salt and wind, of waves and charme for this hidden and immense life.

Q: Is there any artist you consider a model?

A: There is always a person who becomes a point of reference for us, for me this person is my dear friend Enzo Migneco aka Togo. To me, he represents an indescribable model of artist that I appreciate for the advice received, but above all for his generosity and professional honesty.

Gaetano Barbarotto
Wonders of the sea (Meraviglie del mare)

Q: During summer you organized an exhibition in Cefalù, are there any other projects in the pipeline for the near future?

A: This summer, thanks to the Mayor of Cefalù Daniele Tumminello and the Councilors Francesca Mancinelli and Tony Franco, I had the opportunity to exhibit at the Ottagono di Santa Caterina in Piazza Duomo. I presented my personal exhibition ‘Wonders of the sea’ that was a success. It’s a traveling exhibition, in September 2021 it was organized at the Real Fonderia alla Cala, in Palermo and in November it will be hosted at Museo ‘Polo del 900’ at Piazza Castello in Turin. In spring 2023 the same exhibition will be at the Galleria del Centro dell’Incisione Naviglio Grande in Milan, but another project – totally new and different – is already in the pipeline and will be ready in 2024.

Gaetano Barbarotto made us travel through the beauty of the sea painted on canvas. Sicilian Secrets always tells you about some new stories on this blog. And if you wish to stay updated about our news and read our next articles, follow us on Sicilian Secrets’ Facebook page and Instagram.
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