Biography
Epeo (Domenico Cataldi), was born in Trebisacce in the province of Cosenza in 1956. He is a painter, sculptor and poet.
In 1977 he obtained a diploma from the State Technical Institute for surveyors in Trebisacce (CS); in 1990 he obtained his artistic maturity at the Art Institute of Luzzi (CS).
As part of the Leader program, Alto Jonio Cosentino, Epeo takes care of the ceramic courses. For the G.A.L. Potame-Busento, he teaches training courses for restorers of rural furniture, artisans of wooden objects, wrought iron, copper embossing and artistic ceramics.
In 1993 the artist was in Prague, where he also began to create a series of paintings featuring female faces.
At the same time, he exhibited his works in various cities in Italy.
With his stay in Prague, Epeo closes his training period.
In 1994 he was in Rome and met some artists of the “Nuova Scuola Romana” in Via degli Ausoni including Nunzio, Beppe Gallo, Piero Pizzicannella and Bruno Ceccobelli. With the latter he establishes a fruitful friendship relationship, for which, sharing many aspects of the theosophical poetics of the Umbrian artist, Epeo creates a series of works in which frontality, symmetry and verticality enhance the sacredness of his work. This outlines the period that the artist defines as esoteric.
In 1998 Epeo was chosen by Alitalia for its contemporary art exhibitions held in national and international airports and in cities of art; in the same year a personal exhibition was set up for him at the J. F. Kennedy Airport in New York entitled “The secret of signs” with the presentation in the catalog by Tonino Sicoli.
Shortly afterwards he was in Milan, where the attendance of certain cultural environments and some important exhibitions, including that of the Yuncher collection, the personal exhibition of Joseph Beuys and other contacts, such as that with Mimmo Rotella, proved to be fundamental for his evolution of artist.
In the Lombard capital he met Carlo Cazzamali, (collector and artistic director of the “La Pesa” gallery in Monza), who promoted the artist with a series of exhibitions set up in the Milanese hinterland and at the Art Expos of Montichiari, Bergamo, Bologna and Bari.
Epeo never abandons his poetics on the sacredness of art, and upon his return to Calabria some works are born which he calls, respectively, Tabernacles, Enucleations and Prệt-à-porter.
In 2000 the “Writings of Angels” cycle was born.
In 2012 Epeo founded the artistic-cultural association La Dama di Broglio, whose name is inspired by the proto-historic site of Trebisacce, to which the artist attributes decisive value for his research.
In 2014 La Dama di Broglio became an official partner of the Waiting for Leonardo project, focused on the figure of Leonardo da Vinci – Museo dei Brettii e degli Enotri, Cosenza.
Personal exhibitions
1982 – Foyer Teatro A. Rendano, Cosenza
1986 – Palazzo dei Priori, Volterra
1987 – Didascalicon Cultural Club, Cosenza
1992 – Dadodue Laboratory, Salerno
1993 – Studio H: Orarte, Lissone
1993 – Open-Art-Cafè, Lissone
1995 – “Luigi Di Sarro” Center for Documentation and Artistic Research – edited by T. Sicoli, Rome
1996 – Neither in heaven nor on earth – Basilica Santa Maria in Montesanto, Rome
1998 – Alitalia – “The secret of signs” edited by T.Sicoli, J.F.Kennedy, New Work
2000 – Alitalia – “Vissuti” edited by T.Sicoli, Malpensa Airport
2000 – Franciscan Protoconvento, “The writing of angels” edited by Paolo Aita, Castrovillari
2014 – “Art at the service of memory” curated by A. Carelli and Paolo Coen – “Museum of memory”, Ferramonti di Tarsia.
2024 – “Hieros” edited by Cecilia Pavone – C.R.A.C. (Contemporary Art Research Center), Taranto – Italy
Collective exhibitions
1987 – Historic Center Gallery, Florence
1988 – Provincial Palace, Lucca
1992 – Dadodue Laboratory, Salerno
1992 – Cava dei Tirreni, Salerno
1992 – Laboratory 66, Milan
1992 – Rotonda San Biagio Monza MI
1992 – Villa Zoja Concorezzo MI
1992 – Artist’s books Laboratorio 66 MI
1993 – Prometeo Hall Monza
1993 – Studio H: Orarte Lissone MI
1993 – La Pesa Gallery, Monza
1993 – La Pesa Gallery, Monza Expo/Art, Bari
1993 – La Pesa Monza Expo-Art Gallery, Montichiari
1993 – La Pesa Bidart Gallery Bergamo
1993 – La Pesa Expo-Art Gallery Bologna
1993 – Studio H: Orarte Lissone MI
1993 – Studio H: Orarte Lissone MI
1993 – Studio H: Orarte Lissone MI
1993 – Palazzo V. Veneto Lissone MI
1994 – Rino Costa Casale Monferrato Gallery, Expo-Arte Bari
1994 – Il Graffio Cosenza
1994 – Trevi Flash Art Museum, Perugia
1997 – “Urbis artis ’97” edited by Danila Bertasio, Department of Sociology – University of Urbino
1998 – Museum of Word and Image, Collodi
1998 – Galleria l’Eclisse, Rome
1999 – Alitalia – Palazzo del Popolo, Orvieto
1999 – Alitalia – Spanish Fortress, L’Aquila
2000 – Alitalia – Rocca Paolina, Perugia
2001 – Trolleybuses, contemporary art routes, Franciscan Protoconvent, Castrovillari
2002 – Il Graffio, Cosenza
2003 – Alitalia Cinema Festival, Giffoni
2003 – House of printers, Soncino
2003 – Villa San Giovanni Award
2004 – Denied cities – Il Graffio, Cosenza
2005 – M’illumino d’immenso – Art exhibition of the Venice Biennale Sibaritide Museum
2020 – Bilotti Collective (coronavirus) – Rome
2020 – Collective 2020 curated by Gianluca Covelli – Ex Granaio, Roseto C. Sp.co
2006 – Museum of the Present, Rende
2007 – Nativity in contemporary art – curated by Rosario Pinto and Tiziana Altomare Open-Space Gallery, Catanzaro
2014 – “Feminicide and the salvific value of art” – curated by Teodolinda Coltellaro, Castello Ducale Corigliano, (CS)
2014 – “Beyond the wall” curated by Alessandra Carelli and Roberto Sottile – Museum of Memory Tarsia, CS
2015 – “The land filled with your silence” Trebisacce – Palazzo di Città, 2020 (donation)
2023 – “Remembrance Month / To never forget” curated by A. Carelli – Brettii and Enotri Museum, Cosenza
Bibliographic notes
“Roma in mostra” Palazzo delle Esposizioni, Roma,1995 / Flash Art,1993 / Il Giornale dell’Arte, 1995 / Next, 1996 / Riviste Alitalia, Arrivederci, Ulisse,1998 / Vincenzo Varlaro-Epeo – Ed. Pulcinoelefante, Osnago 1998 / Pino Corbo-Epeo – Ed. Pulcinoelefante,1999 / Alda Merini-Epeo – Ed. Pulcinoelefante, 2000 / Paolo Aita-Epeo – Ed. Pulcinoelefante, 2002 / Paolo Aita, Rosa Foschi, Luca Maria Patella, Epeo – Ed. Pulcinoelefante, 2003; “Catanzaro Giorno e Notte”, 2006 / “Il Domani” 2006; “Calabria Ora”, 2006 / “Il Quotidiano”, 2006 / “Il Giornale della Calabria”, 2006 / “Segno” 2007 / “Titolo”, 2007 / “Insede”,2007.
Criticism
P. Aita, G. B. Bassi, L. Bianco, M. Bugatti, A. Carelli, Bruno Ceccobelli, T. Coltellaro, P. Coen, P. Corbo, G. Di Genova, F. Dionesalvi, M. Duranti, A. Fasano, F. Fedi, A. Granese, D. Maffia, M. Maiorino, Ghislain Mayaud, G. Mangone, M. Manzoni Sala, L. Mariangeli, G. Paini, C. Pavone, L. Paini, G. Pedicini, G. Politi, G. Selvaggi, S. Serangeli, T. Sicoli, F. Sortino, D. Trombadori
Giancarlo Politi writes about him:
“Your works are intense and rigorous. Bravo. Even as a poet. A 360° artist”