Paolo Colombo b. 1949, Torino (Italy) | Lives and works in Athens (Greece)

Drawing inspiration from Greek, Roman and Byzantine mosaics, Colombo’s paintings are tightly structured in meticulously intersecting lines that echo the drapes and folds of fabric—tulle, organza— through which emerges imagery referring to ancient history. He approaches painting as a poetic endeavour —an extension of language through image. Colombo’s compositions engage with high and popular culture; informed by his love for the past, they remain unadorned and frugal, well within the modernist canon.

Italian artist, curator, and poet Paolo Colombo studied Languages and Literature at the University of Rome. He had his first exhibition in 1974 in Milano at the Galleria Mario Tazzoli and was the first European artist to show at PS1 in New York (1977). Colombo worked as an artist until 1986. During the following 21 years he has served as Director of the Centre d’ Art Contemporain (Geneva), as Curator at MAXXI – Museo Nazionale delle Arti del XXI Secolo (Rome), and as Artistic Director of Biennales in Mardin (2012), Thessaloniki (2011) and Istanbul (1999). The artist returned to his painting practice in 2007. He has exhibited in galleries and institutions around the world, including Athens, Geneva, London, Los Angeles, and Rossinière. In 2025, Colombo had a retrospective exhibition at the Centre d’Art Contemporain, (Geneva). His work is in the collections of the Benaki Museum (Athens), the Hammer Museum (Los Angeles), Istanbul Modern (Istanbul), and MONA – Museum of Old and New Art (Tasmania).