Alessandro Scarabello (b. 1979, Rome, Italy-lives and works between Rome, Italy; Florence, Italy; and Brussels, Belgium) is a contemporary painter whose practice engages with the tension between figuration and abstraction. His work centers on the physicality of painting gesture, surface, and process, to explore how individuals navigate social pressure, emotional complexity, and shifting realities.
Through fragmented figures and unstable pictorial spaces, Scarabello constructs psychological environments where subjects appear caught between resistance and adaptation. His paintings reflect an ongoing inquiry into identity, transformation, and the expressive potential of the medium itself.
Alessandro Scarabello holds an MFA from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (2015) in Ghent, Belgium; and a BFA of the Academy of Fine Arts (2004) in Rome, Italy. Notable solo exhibitions include Restless Picture at Gallery Apart in Rome, Italy; Repetition Kills (2022) at Museo Ettore Fico in Turin, Italy; and Uppercrust (2019) at Palazzo della Corgna in Castiglione del Lago, Italy. Scarabello participated in institutional group exhibitions at Fondazione MACC (2024) in Calasetta, Italy; Uffizi Museum (2023) in Florence, Italy; Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa (2023) in Venice, Italy; Museo Ettore Fico in Turin (2022), Italy; the Royal Museum of Fine Arts of Belgium (2018) in Brussels, Belgium; among others. The Italian artist participated in various international art biennials, including the Bienal del Fin del Mundo (2015) in Mar Del Plata, Argentina; Biennial of Monza for Young Artists (2013) in Monza, Italy; the 6th Biennial of Tunis (2010), Tunisia; and the 25th Biennial for Mediterranean Countries (2009) in Alexandria, Egypt. Alessandro Scarabello won the first prize of the 10th edition of the Ettore and Ines Fico Price (2020) in Turin, Italy; the International Prize for Young Artists (2006) in Rome, Italy; and the Urban Landscape Extemporary Painting Award (2000) in Rome, Italy. His works are collected by various prestigious public and private collections, including the MEF Ettore Fico Museum of Turin, Italy; the Ceramics Museum of Montelupo, Italy; the Ministry of Foreign Affaris in Rome, Italy; and the Bocs Art Museum in Cosenza, Italy. His works and activities, both as an artist and as a curator, have been featured in renowned magazines and publications, including Artforum, Flash Art, and Artribune, among many others. He is co-founder and co-director of MODO, a cultural association for contemporary art based in Brussels. He also teaches painting at the New Academy of Fine Arts (NABA) in Rome.
CV
2015 MFA, Royal Academy of Fine Arts (KASK), Ghent, Belgium
2004 BFA, Academy of Fine Arts, Rome, Italy
SOLO SHOWS
2025 Heretical Exercises (upcoming), CAR Gallery, Bologna, Italy
2024 Restless Picture, The Gallery Apart, Rome, Italy
2022 Repetition Kills, curated by Andrea Busto, MEF – Museo Ettore Fico,
Turin, Italy
2020 I Still Paint, The Gallery Apart, Rome, Italy
2019 Uppercrust, curated by Marcello Smarrelli, Palazzo della Corgna,
Castiglione del lago, Italy
2016 The Garden of Phersu, The Gallery Apart, Rome, Italy
2013 Uppercrust, The Gallery Apart, Rome, Italy
2010 Nous voulons, The Gallery Apart, Rome, Italy
2009 Alessandro Scarabello at Rialtosantambrogio, c/o The Gallery Apart, Rome, Italy
Inside3, The Gallery Apart, Rome, Italy
2006 Tre di Tre, Antica Fornace Laterizi, Serra de Conti, Italy
2005 LifeinLines, Sala 1 c/o The Gallery Apart, Rome,Italy
GROUP SHOWS
2025 Intorno alla stella, Nashira Gallery, Milan, Italy
Ettore Fico, Dialoghi contemporanei Un’artista un museo una collezione,
curated by Andrea Busto, MEF - Museo Ettore Fico, Turin, Italy
2024 Ettore Fico, Dialoghi contemporanei Un’artista un museo una collezione,
curated by Andrea Busto, Fondazione MACC, Calasetta, Italy
Cantieri Montelupo 2023/2024, curated by Christian Caliandro, Montelupo, Italy
2023 Land In Land Out, curated by Modo asbl with Francesca Sborgi, Uffizi Museum,
Florence, Italy
Italian Painting Today, curated by Damiano Gulli, Triennale, Milan
Ettore Fico, Dialoghi contemporanei Un’artista un museo una collezione,
curated by Andrea Busto, Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa, Venice
2022 Eclettica!, curated by Andrea Busto, MEF – Museo Ettore Fico, Turin, Italy
2021 Pittura Pittura Pittura, Marignana Gallery, Venice
2020 Refolded Percorsi meta-artistici, curated by Luiss Master of Art,
Pastificio Cerere, Rome
2019 Phantasma, Francesca Antonini gallery, Rome, Italy
Silenzioso, mi ritiro a dipingere un quadro, curated by Lorenzo Madaro,
Renata Fabbri gallery, Milano, Italy
Graffiare il presente,curated by Daniele Capra, Casa Testori, Milano,
Italy
2018 Rendez Vous, Hans Op De Beeck, Alessandro Scarabello and Serena Fineschi,
Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Museeoldmastersmuseum, Brussels,
Belgium
Rendez Vous, Hans Op De Beeck, Alessandro Scarabello and Serena Fineschi,
Italian Cultural Center, Brussels, Belgium
2017 Prix Mediatine, Cultural Center - Wolubilis Mediatine, Brussels, Belgium
2016 Grand Hotel, Temple University, Rome, Italy
2015 Imago Mundi, Luciano Benetton Collection, Fondazione Giorgio Cini, Venice,
Italy
Imago Mundi, Luciano Benetton Collection, Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Turin,
Italy
Final show, KASK, Ghent, Belgium
Close up, Palazzo Collicola, Spoleto, Italy
What is your poison?, Croxhapox, Ghent, Belgium
Bienal del fin del mundo, 4th Edition, Mar Del Plata, Argentina;
Valparaiso, Chile; Punta Arenas, Chile; Ushuaia
2014 Don't steal my moment, collaboration of KASK-School of Arts Ghent and
Kunstacademie Düsseldorf, KASK, Ghent, Belgium
2013 Biennial of Monza for young artists, Villa Reale, Monza, Italy
Tw(in)er, c/o Ex Elettrofonica gallery, Internazionali BNL Italia, Central
Stadium, Foro Italico, Rome, Italy
2012 Centro Periferia, Federculture, group show of the winners, Palazzo delle
Esposizioni, Rome, Italy
Combat Prize, group show of the finalists, Museo Civico G. Fattori,
Leghorn, Italy
2010 Impresa Pittura, curated by Raffaele Gavarro and Claudio Libero Pisano,
CIAC – International Center
for Contemporary Art, Genazzano (Rome) , Italy
Image et Mirage, 6th Biennial of Tunis, Palais Khereddine, Tunis, Tunisia
2009 Aftermath, 25th Biennial for Mediterranean Countries, Alexandria Art
Museum, Alexandria, Egypt
Nuove Creatività del Mondo, Federculture, Italian Chamber of Deputies,
Rome, Italy
Studiovisit, A review on works by Italian artists, SPACE Galeria Priestor
c/o 26cc, Bratislava, Slovakia
2008 Streams of consciousness, curated by Cecilia Casorati, Palazzo Grassi,
Chioggia (Venice),
Italy Experimenta – The Farnesina Collection, Italian Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, Rome, Italy
Studiovisit, A review on works by Italian artists, 91mq Art Project Space
c/o 26cc, Berlin, Germany
UP-ART, The Gallery Apart, Rome, Italy
2007 Nuovi Pittori della Realtà, PAC – Contemporary Arts Pavilion, Milan, Italy
Nuovi Realisimi, 58th edition of Premio Michetti, Michetti Foundation,
Francavilla al Mare, Italy
Spazi Aperti 5, Academy of Romania, Rome, Italy
2006 Futuro/Presente – Nuove Creatività del Mondo, Federculture, Rome, Italy
2004 Architetture, Franco Maria Ricci Library, Milan, Italy
2003 Giovane Figurazione, Palazzo della Permanente, Milan, Italy
2002 L’Aldilà nel mondo islamico e occidentale, Red Castle of Tripoli, Libya
2001 Visione intima, Linee della figurazione contemporanea, National Library of
Tripoli, Libya
ART FAIRS
2024 Art Verona, Verona, Italy
Arte Fiera, Bologna, Italy
2023 Art Verona, Verona, Italy
2022 Artissima, Turin, Italy
Art Verona, Verona, Italy
2020 Art Verona, Verona, Italy
Artissima, Turin, Italy
Arte Fiera, Bologna, Italy
2018 Artissima, Turin, Italy
2016 MiArt, Milan, Italy
2013 Arte Fiera, Bologna, Italy
2012 Arte Fiera, Bologna, Italy
2011 Arte Fiera, Bologna, Italy
2010 MiArt, Milan, Italy
2009 MiArt, Milan, Italy
AWARDS/GRANTS
2020 Ettore and Ines Fico Prize, 10th edition, (prize winner), Turin, Italy
Open call: La Madonna di Foligno, il meteorite e il punctum. Come rileggere un capolavoro, (short listed), Foligno, Italy
2019 Premio Cairo, 20th edition, (short listed), Milan, Italy
2017 Prix Mediatine, (short listed), Brussels, Belgium
2012 Combat Prize, 3rd edition, (short listed), Leghorn, Italy
2010 Terna Prize, 3rd edition, (short listed), Rome, Italy
2009 Terna Prize, 2nd edition, (short listed), Rome, Italy
2008 Terna Prize, 1st edition, (short listed), Rome, Italy
2007 Michetti Prize, 58th edition, (short listed), Francavilla al Mare, Italy
2006 Centro Periferia, International Prize for Young Artists, 1st edition, (prize winner), Federculture, Rome, Italy
2005 Premio Celeste, 2nd edition, (short listed), Siena, Italy
2003 Premio Cairo, 4th edition, (short listed), Milan, Italy
2000 Urban landscape extemporary painting award, 1st edition, (prize winner), Italian Central Office for Environmental and Landscape Heritage, Ex Mattatoio, Rome, Italy
RESIDENCIES
2024 Cantieri Montelupo 2024, Museum of Ceramics, Montelupo Fiorentino, Italy
2022 Simposio di Pittura, Fondazione Lac o le Mon, San Cesario di Lecce, Italy
2015 BOCS Residency Program, Cosenza, Italy
ARTIST TALKS/LECTURERS
2024 Artist Talk, Florence Academy of Fine Arts, Florence, Italy
Artist Talk, Italian Cultural Institute, Brussels, Belgium
Artist Talk, Uffizi Galleries, Florence, Italy
2023 Artist Talk, Ceramics Museum of Montelupo, Montelupo, Italy
2018 Artist Talk, Italian Cultural Institute of Brussels, Belgium
2017 Artist Talk, Artissima Art Fair, Turin
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
2021-present – NABA Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti (professor of painting)
2019-present – MODO Cultural Association for Contemporary Art (co-founder and director)
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
2021-Present Full-time Faculty, New Academy of Fine Arts (NABA), Rome
CURATORIAL PROJECTS
2024 M’Odo (I’m listening to myself), co-curated with Serena Fineschi, Laura Viale
and Anna Cestelli Guidi, Auditorium Parco della Musica, Rome, Italy
Land In Land Out, co-curated with Serena Fineschi, Laura Viale, Francesca
Sborgi, Uffizi Galleries, Florence, Italy
2023 1 Second 1 Gram, Luisa Turuani’s solo show, co-curated with Serena Fineschi and Laura Viale, supported by The Italian Council, Brussels, Belgium
2021 Foglio D’Istinto, co-curated with Serena Fineschi and Laura Viale, Siena, Rome, Turin, Italy
2020 M’Odo (I’m listening to myself), co-curated with Serena Fineschi and
Laura Viale, Instagram
2019 The Magnificent Obsession, co-curated with Serena Fineschi and Laura Viale, Brussels, Belgium
GALLERY AFFILIATION
2000-2024 The Gallery Apart, Rome, Italy
www.thegalleryapart.it
SELECTED ARTICLES AND REVIEWS (online)
ARTFORUM (Critics’ picks) 2021, Alessandro Scarabello, text by Marta Silvi
URL: https://www.artforum.com/events/alessandro-scarabello-246688/
JULIET 29/07/2025, Studio Visit, by Maria Vittoria Pinotti
https://www.juliet-artmagazine.com/en/alessandro-scarabello-the-dimension-of-painting/
LA QUADRIENNALE 2021, Studio Visit Alessandro Scarabello, text by Marco Trulli
URL: https://quadriennalediroma.org/alessandro-scarabello/
ARTRIBUNE 20/06/2024, I tentativi di Alessandro Scarabello tornano in mostra a Roma, text by Michele Luca Nero
https://www.artribune.com/uncategorized/2024/06/alessandro-scarabello-mostra-roma/
ARTRIBUNE 18/02/2019, Pittura lingua viva. Parola ad Alessandro Scarabello, text by Damiano Gulli
https://www.artribune.com/arti-visive/arte-contemporanea/2019/02/intervista-alessandro-scarabello-pittura/
ATP DIARY 2020, I never explain #60 - Alessandro Scarabello, curated by Elena Bordignon
https://atpdiary.com/i-never-explain-60-alessandro-scarabello/
FLASH ART 2017, Roma post 2001, text by Gianluca Marziani
https://flash---art.it/article/roma-post-2001/
SELECTED ARTICLES AND REVIEWS (onpaper)
ARTE&CRITICA sept-june 2024, Alessandro Scarabello, text by the editors
ARTE n. 610/2024, La pittura senza pace di Scarabello, text by Cristiana Campanini
LA REPUBBLICA 08/01/2020, Sesso, statue, colore con Scarabello la pittura è passione, text by Lorenzo Madaro
DROME magazine, n. 21/2014, text by Mike Watson
FLASH ART n. 285/2010, Alessandro Scarabello, text by Liliana Spadaro
JULIET n. 142/2009, Alessandro Scarabello, text by Loris Scherni Arte n. 426/2009, Scarabello. Surreale quotidiano a tinte acide, text by Emma Gravagnuolo
FLASH ART n. 265/2007, Speciale Roma, artisti emergenti
BOOK AND MAGAZINE COVERS
2023 Contro l’arte fighetta, publisher Castelvecchi, written by Christian Caliandro
2020 Arbiter Magazine n° 205, publisher Symbol s.r.l