John Raimondi
Sculptor John Raimondi welding one of his early sculptures.
Born
John Raimondi

(1948-05-29) May 29, 1948
Chelsea, Massachusetts
NationalityAmerican
EducationMassachusetts College of Art
Known forAbstract Sculptor

John Raimondi (born May 1948) is an American sculptor best known as a creator of monumental public sculpture, with works throughout the United States and several European countries. He lives and works in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

Biography

The first of four sons born to Erma and Peter Raimondi, John Raimondi was born in Chelsea, Massachusetts in May 1948. Raimondi spent his early years honing his skills while developing an eye for the beauty of nature that surrounded him. The young artist spent much of his time in the company of his family, though he also enjoyed the solitude of drawing and painting, as well as collecting coins and building model airplanes.

In his formative years, Raimondi became fascinated by scale-model automobiles and airplanes, which later translated into full-size "hot rods" as he grew into a teenager. These hobbies proved invaluable in the artist's keen ability to comprehend scale and movement—two of the elements that are essential in his work today.

Originally intending to become a seascape painter, Raimondi first attended Vesper George School of Art and subsequently attended the Portland School of Fine and Applied Arts in Maine (now Maine College of Art). There he met teacher and sculptor Norman Therrien who encouraged Raimondi to try sculpture.[1] Next, Raimondi attended the Massachusetts College of Art where he studied sculpture and graduated in 1973.[2] He exhibited early works at Boston City Hall, Bridgewater State University, and numerous local galleries and museums. This led to Raimondi's first prominent commission, awarded to him in a national competition conducted by the I-80 Bicentennial Sculpture Project, in Nebraska. This sculpture, entitled Erma's Desire, is named for the artist's mother and her intense desire for the happiness of her children.[3] Located in Grand Island, Nebraska, the work was considered controversial due to its suggestive title and abstract form. It was debated fiercely in several major publications and on the TV news program "60 Minutes," catapulting Raimondi into the national spotlight.[4] Since then, Raimondi has completed more than 100 monumental sculptures for public, corporate, and private collections worldwide.

He currently resides in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

Art forgery suit

Raimondi has sued billionaire Igor Olenicoff for art forgery. In a similar case, Olenicoff and his real estate company, Olen Properties Corp., were found guilty of copyright infringement by a federal jury in 2014 and ordered to pay $450,000 in damages to sculptor Don Wakefield, for art forgery.[5][6] [7] Raimondi had been contacted by the real estate tycoon to create versions of two of his extant sculptures as part of a percent for art mandate for property developers. Raimondi had supplied Olenicoff with detailed drawings and photographs of the proposed works, which Olenicof subsequently cancelled. In 2015, Olenicoff was ordered to pay Raimondi $650,000, according to a Benjamin Sutton article in Hyperallergic.com.

If Olenicoff had followed through with commissioning the works, Raimondi would have made $250,000 for each of the four proposed pieces. In 2010, Raimondi was informed that sculptures that originally had been submitted to the city of Brea, California as his works were now attributed to a Chinese forger. Raimondi had never authorized the creation or display of the sculptures he had discussed with Olenicoff.[6]

References

  1. ↑ Ask/Art website
  2. ↑ Harmon-Meek Gallery website Archived 2006-11-09 at the Wayback Machine this gallery in Naples, Florida first showed Raimondi's work in 1994
  3. ↑ Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine this site shows a photograph of the sculpture and quote from Raimondi
  4. ↑ John Raimondi, Sculptor Archived 2010-12-09 at the Wayback Machine Artist website
  5. ↑ Dotinga, William. "Billionaire Nailed for Copying Artist's Work". Courthouse News Service. Retrieved 1 July 2014.
  6. 1 2 Davis, Ben (12 June 2014). "Real Estate Tycoon Must Pay $450,000 in Chinese Sculpture Knock-Off Scheme". ArtNet News. Retrieved 1 July 2014.
  7. ↑ Flynn, Tom. "Sculptor finds alleged copies of his work in corporate collection". The Art Newspaper. Retrieved 1 July 2014.

Further reading

  • Corbett, William. John Raimondi: Sculptor (Hudson Hills Press, 1999) ISBN 1-55595-179-1
  • Henry Adams (author) & Irvin Lippman (foreword). John Raimondi: Drawing to Sculpture (George F Thompson Publishing, 2016) ISBN 1-938086-40-6
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