L.C. was born in Nice (1939) to Italian parents from Ferrara.
His father Nino, then a brilliant young lawyer, was indicted by the regime as a militant anti-fascist and zionist, and detained during the first period of the war. In '42 his family, wife Laura Lampronti – a pianist, Bruno, the eleder son, and L., were permitted to join him in a village in the mountains of southern Italy, where he was confined. At the end of '43, following the fall of fascism, the family settled in Naples where Nino, then 36 years old, became politically active in the Partito d'Azione, the movement that gathered historical anti-fascist and liberal Italians; in '44 Nino succumbed to an illness probably contracted during the long years of physical and psycological deprivation and stress. Laura had to take care of her two children by playing, giving piano lessons and getting a job in a Jewish assistence institution in Rome. Later the family moved to Milano where Laura found a better job. At the age of 45 she suddently died following what it was meant to be ordinary surgery. Bruno studied Economics, working in the same time, and continued his studies in the USA. L. studied nuclear engineering at the Politecnico of Milano. He married Marcella Mayer in '62. Their first child, Nino Amos, ('63) died suddently when he was not yet one year old. One boy, Saul, and two girls, Rosa and Hava, were later born. In the meantime the family settled in Tel Aviv ('67). L. worked as an industrial engineer and started developing sistematically his natural interest in art drawing, which he has been cultivating as a hobby ever since. Painter-cousin Piero Cividalli introduced him to etching, which L. practiced during several years. In the later 70'ies he met Naftali Bezem, a prominent Israeli painter and started to attend his studio, getting from him professional advice and suggestions that persuaded him to devote himself entirely to art painting. In this period he followed painting courses to acquire technical tools which he always considered – and considers - important for skilled craft mastery.
In the early 80'ies Leo's wife Marcella, an astrophysics scientist, was proposed of doing her post-doc degree in the Sao Paulo University. The family then settled in Sao Paulo for two years where L. had the chance of full time art painting practice. By then he had a further crucial meeting: Pietro Maria Bardi, the founder, developer and chief of the MASP, the Museu de Arte de Sao Paulo. Bardi, an established personage of the world of art, prejudices-free and subject to nothing but his judgement, upon seeing L.'s dutiful beginner works, encouraged him to continue in his efforts and told him that, if he continues to work at good pace during the next year or two, a personal exhibition in his museum will take place.
Indeed the circumstances developed in the desired way and L. referred to them as to the confirmation of his definitive initiation to art.
In the middle 80'ies L. spent extended stays in Paris, Florence and Ferrara, mantaining his Israeli base and having personal exhibitions wherever he lived. In '87 he came back to Tel Aviv; he moved in a studio in south Ben Yehuda street. At the end of '87 he introduced cylindrical anamorphosis as a decorative mode of solid silver Kiddush sets, which he has been creating since then alongside other high end Judaica objects www.leocontini-judaica.co.il. In '92 he moved to his present flat and studio in the Adjamy Jaffa quarter. In 2001 he married Anne Hovanessian, whom he met in '99 at the Musée de l'Art et d'Histoire du Judaïsme in Paris, where she was in charge of the museum shop. During the last decade he devoted himself mainly to the development and the application of « anasculpture » alias   « black hole art » the original art mode that he conceived in 2000, extensively documentated in this website.

In the nineties L. casually ran-in Alberto Milano, an old family friend with whom contacts were neglected during fourty years or so. By then A.M. had become an international reference for the history of art prints, optical viewers, etc.
An intense, practical and creative dialogue developed, that played a significant role in the achievements of anasculpture which indeed features perception issues.

In the occasion of the elaboration of this website, L. joined it to his the name of his courageous, unlucky, beautiful, regretted and young-for-ever mother.
 

Leo Contini Lampronti

Jaffa, 2010