Celebrating 15!

The Lines of the Sea and the Land | 1970–1982

A journey through light and form in Piero Guccione's iconic series, capturing the essence of the Hyblaean landscape

The sea from the Bay of Sampieri (Scicli) by Luigi NifosiOriginal Source: Luigi Nifosi

The breath of infinite spaces

The cycle “Lines of the Sea and the Land” began in 1970. In contrast to the Roman phase of the "Gardens and Reflections on the Volkswagen", the sea and the Hyblaean landscape became an opportunity for vast open spaces and shifting blue surfaces shaped by the daily cycle of light.

Il mare di Sampieri (2024) by Archivio Piero GuccionePiero Guccione Archive

Between luminous vibrations and geometries

The sea, in particular, is rendered through a painting marked by a dense materiality, recalling informal and abstracting solutions structured geometrically, inspired by the lines of marine currents and by golden glimmers that draw upon pointillist memories.

The lines of sea and land (1970) by Piero GuccioneOriginal Source: Private Collection

I adopted the title of the cycle  "The Lines of the Sea and the Land"

The Shadow and the Lines of the Earth III (1975) by Piero GuccioneOriginal Source: Paolo Brodbeck Collection

on the basis of those beautiful Lieder by Gustav Mahler known as "The Song of the Earth".

Shadow on the sea (1973/1974) by Piero GuccioneOriginal Source: Grafiche Antigua Collection

In some way, I too wanted to create an evocation

The shadow and the lines of the sea (1974/1975) by Piero GuccioneOriginal Source: Private Collection

that would be not only lyrical, but also physical.

Reflection on the sea (1979/1982) by Piero GuccioneOriginal Source: Emiliano e Ottavia Cerasi Collection

I wanted to restore weight to things

Reflection on the Sea (1979/1982) by Piero GuccioneOriginal Source: Private Collection

and, at the same time, to sing the wonder of those spaces. - Piero Guccione

Three Movements of the Sea dedicated to Franz Schubert (1977/1980) by Piero GuccioneOriginal Source: Private Collection

Credits: Story

Photo credit: Luigi Nifosì, Archivio Piero Guccione
© 2025 by SIAE for the artworks of Piero Guccione

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.

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