Antonio Sciacca (1957) - Reliquie del Mito

In Reliquie del Mito, Antonio Sciacca assembles fragments of the classical world into a contemporary meditation on memory, beauty and the endurance of cultural symbols. A sculpted bust of Medusa emerges from darkness, accompanied by a winged sandal, while a vivid branch of Mediterranean red coral introduces a striking chromatic counterpoint.

Rather than reconstructing antiquity, Sciacca isolates its remnants. Each object functions as an archaeological fragment, carrying its own symbolic weight while inviting the viewer to imagine the larger narrative from which it originated. Medusa, traditionally associated with fear and transformation, appears here not as a monster but as a timeless sculpture, softened by light and imbued with quiet humanity. Beside her, the winged sandal evokes Hermes and the ideas of movement, communication and transcendence, while the coral anchors the composition to the Mediterranean, where mythology, history and nature have long coexisted.

Executed with remarkable technical precision, the artist employs a restrained palette of warm stone, bronze and deep black, allowing the coral's intense crimson to become the visual heartbeat of the painting. The dramatic chiaroscuro recalls the traditions of the Old Masters, while the minimalist arrangement lends the work a distinctly contemporary presence.

Reliquie del Mito is a contemplative still life in which mythology survives not through spectacle, but through the quiet persistence of objects that continue to shape our collective imagination.

Oil on canvas.

Signed by the artist.

Oil on Canvas
2026

Artist Bio:
Antonio Sciacca (b. 1957, Sicily) is a distinguished Italian painter celebrated for his refined fusion of classical technique and contemporary sensibility. His work reflects a deep reverence for Renaissance and Neoclassical traditions, reinterpreted through an intimate and modern lens. Sciacca’s portraits are known for their quiet strength, psychological depth, and technical precision, often incorporating mythological or historical motifs as meditations on continuity and beauty. Exhibited internationally, his paintings stand as a testament to the enduring dialogue between art, humanity, and time.