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NEW YORK, NY — The art world mourns the passing of Italian-American sculptor Bruno Lucchesi, who died in New York at the age of 99, just weeks before his 100th birthday.

For more than seven decades, Lucchesi created figurative sculptures in bronze, terracotta, and marble inspired by everyday life. His work explored themes of family, compassion, spirituality and the human experience.

Born in 1926 in Fibbiano Montanino near Lucca, Italy, Lucchesi studied from 1947-1950 at the Istituto d'Arte "A. Passaglia" in Lucca before serving as an assistant professor at the University of Florence in 1953. Bruno created several public works in Florence during 1953-1957 and then, in 1958, he immigrated to New York City, where he had his first solo show in 1961, started teaching in 1962 at the New School and at National Academy of Design, and established himself as one of America's leading figurative sculptors.

"Bruno had an incredible eye for people," said Ron Cavalier, founder of Cavalier Galleries. "He sculpted effortlessly – it was as if the clay in his fingers came from his soul. He was the first major artist to show with the gallery early on in my art career. He was a creative genius and one of the kindest people I’ve ever met.”

Lucchesi's sculptures are held in many of the world's leading museums and public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Smithsonian Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Brooklyn Museum, the Dallas Museum of Art, The Museum of the City of New York, amongst others, and numerous universities, churches, and civic institutions throughout the United States and Europe.

His career was marked by countless honors, including two Honorary Doctorate Degrees of Fine Arts, a Guggenheim Fellowship, the National Sculpture Society's Medal of Honor for Achievement in and Encouragement of American Sculpture, the Portrait Society of America's Gold Medal for Lifelong Achievement, multiple Gold Medals from the National Academy of Design and from National Sculpture Society, NY City of Italian Cultural Society Lion of San Marco Art Award, and from the Cities of Lucca, Florence, Camaiore, and Pietrasanta, Italy.

Beyond his own artistic practice, Lucchesi was a beloved teacher and mentor whose workshops influenced generations of sculptors across the United States and Europe. His instructional books—including Terracotta, Modeling the Head in Clay and Modeling the Figure in Clay—remain foundational texts for artists around the world. There are 3 art books by David Finn: Bruno Lucchesi, Sculptor of the Human Spirit, Bruno Lucchesi, and Bruno Lucchesi: Celebrating the Beauty of Everyday Life. In Bruno Lucchesi: Sculptor of the Human Spirit, Finn reflected on the artist’s enduring legacy:

“The gentleness, kindness, simplicity, modesty of Bruno Lucchesi are ever present in his work. His people are wonderful to behold and a privilege to photograph. His genius is to express a joy of life even when he shows conditions that create misery and suffering, for Lucchesi’s subjects seem to feel that being alive is its own reward. His gift to us is that as observers and lovers of his people, we feel their sense of gratitude in our own hearts.”

Lucchesi is survived by his beloved wife, Ann Rosow-Lucchesi, family, friends, collectors, and students. His work can be found in museums, public spaces, and private collections around the world, where it will continue to inspire for generations to come.

(Photo courtesy Ann Rosow-Lucchesi)