Entity

Magnanini, Iro

Thumbnail
TitleMagnanini, Iro
Family NameMagnanini
Given Name(s)Iro
Alternate Name(s) / Title(s)Renzo
GenderMale
Full Biographical DataIro Magnanini, known as Renzo Magnanini (Bodeno di Gonzaga, 18/10/1920 – Bentivoglio, 12/08/2006). He was an Italian painter and sculptor. Moved to Venice to study at an Academy of the Arts where he met Ardengo Soffici, Arturo Tosi, and Carlo Scarpa. He was unable to complete his education because he was drafted into military service and sent to fight in World War II. In May 1940, he fought in East Africa at Amba Alagi alongside the Duke of Aosta. Captured by the British forces, he was sent to South Africa, in the Orange Free State. Between late 1943 and 1948, he was in Zonderwater prisoner-of-war camp and there he could focus on painting and sculpture, creating works inspired by life in the camp and portraits of local figures and officers, which he signed as “I. Magnanini”. He spent five years in Zonderwater and left some of his works in Galleries in South Africa. Upon his repatriation to Italy in 1948, Magnanini began to sustain himself solely through the income generated by his artistic endeavors. He passed away on August 12, 2006, at the hospital in Bentivoglio after a long illness and was buried in the Baricella cemetery. In 2021, his wife Giuliana, donated the artist’s worktable and easel to the municipality of Baricella.
Related ResourcesMagnanini Iro Renzo_The ceremony of presenting the picture “Descent from the Cross” by Renzo Magnanini to the State Hermitage Museum
Magnanini Iro Renzo_E il pittore ignoto Conquista l’Ermitage
Magnanini Iro Renzo_Renzo Magnanini, i capolavori di un Maestro del Novecento
Pre- Captivity OccupationArtist
Birth Date1920-10-18
Country Of BirthItaly
Place Of BirthBordeno di Gonzaga
JourneyBordeno di Gonzaga
Venezia
Amba Alagi
Orange Free State
POW Camp Zonderwater
Italy
Related Person(s)Magnanini, Pasquino
Magnanini, Giuliana
Bertolotti, Rosina
Death Date2006-12-08
Country Of DeathItaly
Place Of DeathBentivoglio
Cause Of Deathlong disease
Current Resting PlaceBaricella
Information Source U R L(s)https://www.venderequadri.it/catalogo/renzo-magnanini-attribuzione-senza-titolo/
https://ricerca.repubblica.it/repubblica/archivio/repubblica/2000/11/07/il-pittore-ignoto-conquista-ermitage.html
https://www.hermitagemuseum.org/news/hm11_3_6?lng=ru
Bibliographic Citationhttps://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renzo_Magnanini
Elisa Longarato, Zonderwater Ex-POW Block Association, email, 6 December 2024
Linked FromLieutenant J. Ingber’s portrait
Magnanini, Iro | byMarriage.isHusbandOf – > Magnanini, Giuliana
Magnanini, Iro | Descendants.IsChildOf.IsSonOf – > Bertolotti, Rosina
Magnanini, Iro | Descendants.IsChildOf.IsSonOf – > Magnanini, Pasquino

Periods of Captivity

POW Camp Zonderwater/-1948/1948

TitlePOW Camp Zonderwater/-1948/1948
ClassificationPrisoner of War
Camp Or Place Held CaptivePOW Camp Zonderwater
Date Of Repatriation1948
Date Of Release1948

Linked records