Renato Borsato (1927-2013) - Collezione Deana, Composizione Acquatica N.2

Origin

The artwork comes from the furnishings of the historic Venetian hotel Bonvecchiati, founded in the 1950s, whose paintings were part of the Deana collection. The hotel was established by the Venetian entrepreneur and collector Arturo Deana, a well-known cultural figure in the city, who in 1929 purchased what would become the famous restaurant 'La Colomba'. It would be nothing unusual if not for the fact that among the patrons were names like Tosi, Morandi, De Pisis, Chagall, Kokoshka, and Picasso.

It was a wonderful time for art in Venice, thanks also to the presence of Peggy Gugghnheim. Arturo Deana became increasingly passionate about painting, also thanks to his close friendship with the poet Diego Valeri and the gallerist Carlo Cardazzo, founder and owner of the Galleria del Cavallino since 1942, a historic Venetian gallery and one of the most renowned in Italy in the second half of the 20th century.

Deana's passion for art led him to enhance the Bonvecchiati hotel with part of his private collection and to establish in 1946 the 'La Colomba Painting Prize', after the interruption of the Venice Biennale due to wartime reasons. The event's success was such that it was dubbed the 'Little Biennale'. In 1953, the 'International Competition for a La Colomba Menu' was born, with its first edition attracting as many as 300 artists.


Author

Renato Borsat (1927-2013) was an Italian painter. Born in Venice in 1927, he emerged as one of the most representative figures of the lagoon painting of the second half of the twentieth century, embodying a deep and visceral connection with his hometown. His rise in the art world was rapid and marked by early recognitions: indeed, in the 1950s, he drew critical attention by winning the prestigious Premio Burano in 1953 and participating, still very young, in the Venice Biennale. During this crucial period, Borsato was able to develop an autonomous language that, while engaging with the avant-garde and the effervescence of Veneto Spatialism, rejected pure abstraction to maintain a poetic contact with reality, reinterpreting it through a modern and rigorous formal synthesis.

His artistic maturity was enriched by numerous trips across Europe, especially to Paris, London, and Switzerland, experiences that ignited his palette with new chromatic suggestions and a more cosmopolitan light. Despite these international influences, his preferred subjects remained rooted in an intimate view of nature and urban spaces: his famous Venetian views, snowy squares, and lush gardens were not merely landscape descriptions but dreamlike evocations filled with matter and color. Over time, his brushwork became increasingly dense and vibrant, building space through sharp tonal contrasts that transformed the canvas into a sensory experience, where the melancholy of the lagoon merged with an almost expressionist vitality.

In addition to his prolific painting production, Borsato was an active figure in Venetian cultural life, serving for years as President of the Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa and becoming a reference point for new generations of artists. He remained in this role until his passing in 2013.

Description

"Water Composition No. 2", oil on canvas, 140*100cm with frame, 110*75cm canvas only, datable to the 1960s, signed lower right.

The viewer is presented with a scene of rare and essential underwater simplicity. The scene is inhabited by stylized silhouettes of fish, rendered in orange and golden tones, that seem to glide silently through a deep and undefined space. At the top of the canvas, a tangle of white lines, resembling scratches or filaments, suggests the presence of nets cast from above or the rippled reflection of the water's surface, creating a dynamic tension between the static seabed and the subtle movement of aquatic life.

The strength of the work lies in the extraordinary handling of the pictorial material. The surface is not a simple background but a vibrant field of forces, achieved through a very refined play of overlays between black bituminous and silver. This layering creates an almost metallic, corroded texture that captures and reflects light, simulating lunar glows on the dark waters of the lagoon. It is a chromatic choice that poetically alludes to a 'night fishing': the darkness of the water is not an inert void but alive, pulsating with silvery reflections emerging from the depths. The shapes of the fish, with their warm, earthy color, contrast with the coldness of the surrounding environment, serving as visual anchors that guide the eye through this atmospheric density.

The work is an emblematic example of Borsato's production in the 1960s, a period during which the artist assimilates and reworks the tenets of Venetian Spatialism. However, unlike contemporaries seeking 'empty everything' or conceptual abstraction, Borsato here demonstrates his firm resolve not to sever the connection with phenomenic reality. The spatialist matrix is evident in the structural use of matter and in the treatment of the surface, but the subject remains unmistakably tied to the narration of his Venice. A painting of notable technical experimentation and refined aesthetic impact.

Condition Report

Excellent overall condition. The painting is intact in every part, with vivid coloration and clearly legible. The frame is included as a courtesy.

Tracked and insured shipment with adequate packaging.