Antonio Pio Saracino

Biography

Saracino was born in 1976 in Apulia, in the south of Italy, and attended the La Sapienza University of Architecture in Rome, where he graduated with a Master's Degree in 2003. He worked at La Sapienza as an assistant professor of architectural design and also worked with several international architectural firms. In 2004 Saracino began collaborating with Steve Blatz, an architect based in New York. Saracino has created designs for several companies and individuals such as Eni, MTV Staying Alive Foundation, Bloomingdales, the Italian government, Matt Mitcham.

Saracino's work has been placed as part of the permanent collections in several museums such as the Brooklyn Museum, and has been shown in solo and group exhibitions both in Italy and internationally. He has won several awards for his work and received accolades from ARTnews magazine and New Italian Blood.

The Museum of Arts and Design in New York featured Saracino’s work in the 2013 exhibition Out of Hand: Materializing the Postdigital.

In 2013 Saracino was commissioned to design a public art project for Bryant Park in Manhattan, entitled The Guardians: Hero and Superhero. The project consisted of two 13-foot-high statues, one made of marble and one made of stainless steel, that depicted "legendary civic heroes". The first statue, The Guardians: Hero was inspired by Michelangelo’s "David", and was created as a gift by the Italian Government and Eni to symbolize friendship between Italy and the United States.

Reception

Saracino's work has been the focus of several reviews. Vogue reviewed him positively, remarking that Saracino was "among the most prolific Italian industrial designers abroad and has been beatified by serial accolades." He has also been covered in publications such as The New York Times, Architectural Digest, Interior Design, and Wallpaper.

Works

Saracino has designed buildings, monuments and modern furniture. A selection of his design include:

Products

Group shows

Solo shows