Everyone experiences art freely, according to the emotions they feel

JAGO is an Italian artist working in the field of sculpture. He was born in Frosinone (Italy) in 1987, where he studied art high school and then the Academy of Fine Arts (left in 2010).

His artistic research is rooted in traditional techniques. Jago uses marble as a noble material, but he treats fundamental themes of the era he inhabits, establishing a direct relationship with the public through the use of video and social networks to share the production process.

At the age of 24, upon presentation by Maria Teresa Benedetti, he was selected by Vittorio Sgarbi to participate in the 54th edition of the Venice Biennale, exhibiting the marble bust of Pope Benedict XVI (2009) that earned him the Pontifical Medal. The youthful sculpture was then reworked in 2016, taking the name Habemus Hominem and becoming one of his best-known works.

Since his first solo exhibition in the capital in 2016, he has lived and worked in Italy, China and America. He has been a visiting professor at the New York Academy of Art, where he gave a masterclass and several lectures in 2018.

“Jago is a world, he is an existence, a character. There is in him a very strong will to communicate”

Maria Teresa Benedetti

Following an exhibition at the Armory Show in Manhattan, JAGO moved to New York. There he began the creation of Veiled Son, permanently displayed inside the Chapel of the Whites in the church of San Severo Fuori le Mura in Naples.

In 2019, on the occasion of the European Space Agency (ESA) Beyond mission, JAGO was the first artist to send a marble sculpture to the International Space Station. The work, titled The First Baby and depicting a newborn fetus, returned to Earth in February 2020 under the custody of the mission leader, Luca Parmitano.

In November of the same year, he made the installation Look Down, which was placed in Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, then later displayed in the Al Haniyah Desert in Fujairah (UAE). On October 1, 2021, JAGO installed his Pietas in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Montesanto in Piazza del Popolo (Rome), and on March 12, 2022, he inaugurated his solo exhibition at Palazzo Bonaparte in Rome.

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2022 “Jago, The Exhibition”, Palazzo Bonaparte, Rome, Italy
2021 “Look Here”, Desert Al Haniya, Fujairah, UAE
2021 “Pietà”, Basilica of Santa Maria in Montesanto, Rome, Italy
2021 “Jago a Sant’Anna dei Lombardi ”, Complex of Sant’Anna dei Lombardi, Naples, Italy
2020 “Look Down”, Piazza del Plebiscito, Naples, Italy
2019 “First Baby”, International Space Station, ISS
2019 “Figlio Velato”, Basilica of San Severo Outside the Walls, Naples, Italy
2019 “Veiled Son”, HighLine Stages, New York, USA
2019 “Habemus Hominem”, Galleria Doria Pamphilj, Rome, Italy
2018 “Habemus Hominem”, Museo Carlo Bilotti, Villa Borghese, Rome, Italy
2017 “Circulatory Apparatus,” Galleria Montrasio Arte, Monza, Italy
2017 “Circulatory Apparatus,” Galleria Montrasio Arte, Milan, Italy
2016 “Memories,” Basilica of SS XII Apostles, Rome, Italy
2014 “Ele-Mental Anatomy,” Fondazione Umberto Mastroianni, Arpino, Italy
2011 “Habemus Papam,” Museo della Media Valle del Liri, Sora, Italy

2022 “Jago, The Exhibition”, Palazzo Bonaparte, Rome, Italy
2021 “Look Here”, Desert Al Haniya, Fujairah, UAE
2021 “Pietà”, Basilica of Santa Maria in Montesanto, Rome, Italy
2021 “Jago a Sant’Anna dei Lombardi ”, Complex of Sant’Anna dei Lombardi, Naples, Italy
2020 “Look Down”, Piazza del Plebiscito, Naples, Italy
2019 “First Baby”, International Space Station, ISS
2019 “Figlio Velato”, Basilica of San Severo Outside the Walls, Naples, Italy
2019 “Veiled Son”, HighLine Stages, New York, USA
2019 “Habemus Hominem”, Galleria Doria Pamphilj, Rome, Italy
2018 “Habemus Hominem”, Museo Carlo Bilotti, Villa Borghese, Rome, Italy
2017 “Circulatory Apparatus,” Galleria Montrasio Arte, Monza, Italy
2017 “Circulatory Apparatus,” Galleria Montrasio Arte, Milan, Italy
2016 “Memories,” Basilica of SS XII Apostles, Rome, Italy
2014 “Ele-Mental Anatomy,” Fondazione Umberto Mastroianni, Arpino, Italy
2011 “Habemus Papam,” Museo della Media Valle del Liri, Sora, Italy

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2022 Canova and contemporary sculpture, Contemplazioni, Possagno, Italy
2019 “The Unveiling,” ABC Stone, New York, USA
2018 “The Unveiling,” ABC Stone, New York, USA
2018 “ADA Your Art and Design Advisor,” Palazzo Doria Pamphilj, Rome, Italy
2017 “Generation What?”, MAXXI, Rome, Italy
2016 “FINDINGS 1,” CAMUSAC – Cassino Museum of Contemporary Art, Cassino, Italy
2016 “Poppi Deposit Of Art,” Castello di Poppi, Poppi, Italy
2016 “Shock Therapies,” LUISS Guido Carlo University, Rome, Italy
2015 “BoCs Art in Cosenza,” Cosenza, Italy
2011 “The earth needs men,” Reggia di Caserta, Caserta, Italy
2011 “54th Venice Biennale” – Italian Pavilion, Palazzo Venezia, Rome, Italy
2011 “Vanitas,” Doria Pamphilj Gallery, Rome, Italy

2019 “The Unveiling,” ABC Stone, New York, USA
2018 “The Unveiling,” ABC Stone, New York, USA
2018 “ADA Your Art and Design Advisor,” Palazzo Doria Pamphilj, Rome, Italy
2017 “Generation What?”, MAXXI, Rome, Italy
2016 “FINDINGS 1,” CAMUSAC – Cassino Museum of Contemporary Art, Cassino, Italy
2016 “Poppi Deposit Of Art,” Castello di Poppi, Poppi, Italy
2016 “Shock Therapies,” LUISS Guido Carlo University, Rome, Italy
2015 “BoCs Art in Cosenza,” Cosenza, Italy
2011 “The earth needs men,” Reggia di Caserta, Caserta, Italy
2011 “54th Venice Biennale” – Italian Pavilion, Palazzo Venezia, Rome, Italy
2011 “Vanitas,” Doria Pamphilj Gallery, Rome, Italy

FAIRS AND AUCTIONS

2019 “Paratissima,” ADA Your Art and Design Advisor, Turin, Italy
2019 “Take home a nude,” Sotheby’s, NewYork, USA
2019 “The Armory Show,” Montrasio Arte Gallery, New York, USA
2018 “Paratissima Fair,” FeralHorsees, Turin, Italy
2018 “The Armory Show,” Montrasio Arte Gallery, New York, USA
2017 “Bologna Arte Fiera,” Galleria Montrasio Arte, Bologna, Italy
2016 “The Others Art Fair,” White Noise Gallery, Turin, Italy

2019 “Paratissima,” ADA Your Art and Design Advisor, Turin, Italy
2019 “Take home a nude,” Sotheby’s, NewYork, USA
2019 “The Armory Show,” Montrasio Arte Gallery, New York, USA
2018 “Paratissima Fair,” FeralHorsees, Turin, Italy
2018 “The Armory Show,” Montrasio Arte Gallery, New York, USA
2017 “Bologna Arte Fiera,” Galleria Montrasio Arte, Bologna, Italy
2016 “The Others Art Fair,” White Noise Gallery, Turin, Italy

AWARDS

2022 eTutorWeb Award, Rome, Italy
2020 “Culture and Identity” Award, Anagni, Italy
2017 Investiture “Master of Stone 2017,” MarmoMacc 2017, Verona, Italy
2017 1st Prize “Euromobil Group 2017,” Arte Fiera Bologna, Bologna, Italy
2015 1st “Pio Catel Award,” Franz Ludwig Catel Foundation, Scuderie Aldobrandini, Frascati, Italy
2013 “Arkes Award,” Castello Boncompagni Viscogliosi, Isola del Liri, Italy
2012 “Pontifical Medal,” Vatican, Pontifical Council for Culture in Rome, Italy
2012 1st prize “Gala de l’Art a Monte-Carlo,” Principality of Monaco

2020 “Culture and Identity” Award, Anagni, Italy
2017 Investiture “Master of Stone 2017,” MarmoMacc 2017, Verona, Italy
2017 1st Prize “Euromobil Group 2017,” Arte Fiera Bologna, Bologna, Italy
2015 1st “Pio Catel Award,” Franz Ludwig Catel Foundation, Scuderie Aldobrandini, Frascati, Italy
2013 “Arkes Award,” Castello Boncompagni Viscogliosi, Isola del Liri, Italy
2012 “Pontifical Medal,” Vatican, Pontifical Council for Culture in Rome, Italy
2012 1st prize “Gala de l’Art a Monte-Carlo,” Principality of Monaco

COURSES AND LECTURES

2018 Workshop, “The social communication of art,” Accademia delle Belle Arti di Brera, Milan, Italy
2018 Mater Class, NewYork Academy of Art, NewYork, USA
2018 Lecture, NewYork Academy of Art, NewYork, USA

PERFORMANCE

2022 Talk “Changing the world through a block of marble,” Turin, Italy
2021 Talk ” Jago meets the schools of Piacenza,” Piacenza, Italy
2019 Talk “Dreamers day,” Milan, Italy
2018 Talk, “Campare d’arte,” Mugellini Festival, Potenza Picena, Italy
2018 Performance 3D sculpture, “Jago 3D,” Cabudanne de sos poetas, Seneghe, Italy
2017 Talk, “Genova TEDex,” Genoa, Italy
2017 Talk, “TramandArs,” Somma Vesuviana, Italy
2017 3D Sculpture Performance, “Artigitale,” Guardiagrele, Italy

2021 Talk ” Jago meets the schools of Piacenza,” Piacenza, Italy
2019 Talk “Dreamers day,” Milan, Italy
2018 Talk, “Campare d’arte,” Mugellini Festival, Potenza Picena, Italy
2018 Performance 3D sculpture, “Jago 3D,” Cabudanne de sos poetas, Seneghe, Italy
2017 Talk, “Genova TEDex,” Genoa, Italy
2017 Talk, “TramandArs,” Somma Vesuviana, Italy
2017 3D Sculpture Performance, “Artigitale,” Guardiagrele, Italy

PUBLICATIONS

2022 “Jago. The Exhibition,” Maria Teresa Benedetti, Drago Editions
2022 Canova and contemporary sculpture, Vittorio Sgarbi, Sara Pallavicini, Contemplations
2021 “Veiled Son, catalog of the permanent exhibition,” Tommaso Zijno, Edizioni San Gennaro
2020 “Jago, renaissance of the third millennium,” Maria Pia Cappello, Susil Editions
2019 “222 Emerging Artists to Invest in in 2019,” Cesare Biasini Selvaggi, Exibart
2018 “Jago: Habemus Hominem,” Maria Teresa Benedetti, Silvana Editore
2018 “222 Emerging Artists to Invest in in 2018,” Cesare Biasini Selvaggi, Exibart
2016 “Jago – Memories,” Tommaso Zijno, Maria Teresa Benedetti, Marco Tonelli, Giovanni Valle Editions
2011 “The State of Art,” Vittorio Sgarbi, Skira
2011 “Vanitas, Lotto, Caravaggio, Guercino in the Doria Pamphilj Collection,” Massimiliano Floridi, Alessandra Mercantini, Silvana Editore

2021 “Veiled Son, catalog of the permanent exhibition”, San Gennaro Edition
2020 “Jago, renaissance of the third millennium,” Maria Pia Cappello, Susil Editions
2019 “222 Emerging Artists to Invest in in 2019,” Cesare Biasini Selvaggi, Exibart
2018 “Jago: Habemus Hominem,” Maria Teresa Benedetti, Silvana Editore
2018 “222 Emerging Artists to Invest in in 2018,” Cesare Biasini Selvaggi, Exibart
2016 “Jago – Memories,” Tommaso Zijno, Maria Teresa Benedetti, Marco Tonelli, Giovanni Valle Editions
2011 “The State of Art,” Vittorio Sgarbi, Skira
2011 “Vanitas, Lotto, Caravaggio, Guercino in the Doria Pamphilj Collection,” Massimiliano Floridi, Alessandra Mercantini, Silvana Editore

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