The exhibition took place in two separate locations: Villa Palagione showed works from several years ago and the Locce of Palazzo Pretorio with works from recent years.

Each location covered one distinct phase; the first was a homage to the sixties and beyond, developing expressive research, the experience found in one single place - New York - when "new" was "in"; the second places man as the centre of pictorial space and the immediateness of the images as the idea "accumulation" point. In both phases Licio Isolani not only reveals his artistic geniality but also his original creativity, sensitivity and above all his profound humanity.

We are extremely grateful to the artist who, as a trait d'union between Europe and United States, has provided us with the opportunity to strengthen our calling and further consolidate our intercultural commitment here at Villa Palagione, to the municapality of Volterra for taking on patronage of the event and for allowing us use of the Logge of Palazzo Pretorio, and last but not least we would like to thank the promoters and all those who helped with the organisation.

Licio Isolani was born 1931 in Volterra, Italy. He studied art at Volterra and Florence art Institute, where he received a master of fine arts degree.

His artistic education began very early at his father and grandfather's alabaster workshop, where he carved and modelled decorative animals. However, his curiosity went beyond these activities. One day young Licio would be drawing Mickey Mouse, while next he would be tinkering with rubber bands and electric wires rigging up an electric doorbell. He sees his artistic activities as still another kind of game--a more serious one.

After completing his artistic studies in Florence, he travelled to the United States. Shortly thereafter, he set up his studio in New York where he is currently living. At the beginning of the 1960s Licio secured a research position at Pratt Institute in New York. Now he is Senior Associate Professor at Pratt's School of Art and Design.

He is member of the first co-operatively based galleries, the "Coop-Gallery on 10th Street", which were founded in Licio's early years in New York City.

By the end of the 1960s, Licio had joined the E.A.T. (Experiment in Art and Technology) group, founded by the artists Robert Rauschenberg, John Cage, and by IBM engineer Bill Klüver. IBM was aready the main sponsor of "Nine Evenings" at Lexington Armory, New York.

Participating in some of its major exhibitions, including one jointly orgaised by the Museum of Modern Art and the Brooklyn Museum in New York, called "Some More Beginnings". Through the E.A.T. Licio rekindled his old love for gadgetry, science and natural phenomena adding his own personal artistic sensibility. At that time he concentrated on kinetic sculpture, introducing new materials including plastic. Licio pushed his curiosity to new limit of possibilities. At Columbia University he explored the employment of atomic energy to sustain permanent illumination inside his sculptures. Unfortunately this was eventually abandoned due to the danger involved in its final realisation.

Then, a very important change occurred in Licio's work. At the beginning of the 1970s, while in Italy, directing a Summer Sculpture Program for the Pratt Instutute, he was invited by the the city of Volterra to participate in a project called "VOLTERRA 73". There he presented an autobiographical work called "Volterra anno zero" (Year Zero), where local people were invited to participate. At this point, his actvities in the field of performance art and installations began. It was at this point he stated "Finally, I have found my total creative freedom."

In 1979 Licio was in France. At the "Vitrine Pour L'Art Actuel Gallery" in Paris he presented a Performance called "At The Heart of the Matter." A dialogue carried out through writing between himself and the audience was presented in the gallery. With this work, the public was exposed to the most important artistic concept and deeply felt human expression of his art. "SURVIVAL."

In the fall of 1986 Licio was invited by the government of Taiwan to present a series of lectures at the Handicraft Institute regarding new technologies used to cast fine objects. On this occasion he visited Tama Art University in Tokyo, Japan. In 1993 he was in Canada for the exhibition opening of "Un Point de Vue Sur le Design" held at the Montreal Museum of Decorative Arts, (Design) where his work is part of the Museum's collection. In 1995 Licio was in Taipei, Taiwan, at the opening of his one man painting exhibition at the Yoo Yoo Yang Museum & May Gallery.

Among Licio's other important artistic activities are his Performances at the Guggenheim, Whitney Museums and at the Franklin Furnace multimedia experimental area. Exhibitions of work at the Trenton State Museum, The Hudson River Museum and The Newark Museum. His work is found in the collections of the Minnesota Museum of Modern Art, The Montreal Museum of Design and The Smithsonian Design Museum in New York, plus in various private Collections.