Robert Castagna

Biography

Robert Castagna`s first series of work was black and white photographs of Copley Square which was shown in a solo exhibition in the Boston Room of the Boston Public Library.  Work from this series and other black and whites of a similar nature were then acquired by the library for its permanent collection.  This exhibition was followed up with photographs of Harvard Square, using the Square itself as the exhibition venue, photographs were scattered throughout storefronts and store-windows in a broad show entitled the Harvard Square Document. Images from these early shows were also exhibited in the Danforth Museum of Art.

The next major series of work was photographs from Kyoto Japan in a portfolio entitled Kyoto in its Season.  This work was displayed in a solo exhibition at Rolly-Michaux Gallery in Boston.  Pieces from this series were then selected for the New Hampshire Institute of Art, the Brookline Arts Center, Casa Moretti (museum of Marino Moretti in Italy) and soon to be exhibited at the Art Complex Museum.  Prints from this series are now also being acquired by the permanent collection of the Boston Public Library. One can view and acquire images from this collection at Rolly-Michaux Gallery.

Currently Castagna is working on several ongoing projects including images of incremental and seasonal change at the Brooks Estate in Medford, Massachusetts as well as photographs from Farnams, Massachusetts: a small village in the Berkshires that was home to his grandparents and their family after emigrating from Italy during the depression era.

Statement

As I walked to the Brooks Estate I thought of its history: a preservation land with roots to the first Puritan settlers in 1660 (I wonder what Native American tribe was there before?).  Since its inception the estate has dwindled, sold off by ancestor after ancestor.  More recently the battle had become one between Brooks preservation and Oak Grove Cemetery. I thought: when I die throw my ashes in the Brooks Pond, a more appropriate place of burial. Allow my monument to be the images that remain, signifying my vision - better than any tombstone.

artist journal excerpt

Contact:

Robert Castagna can be contacted by email at info@castagnastudio.com or (617) 833-9271. His website is www.castagnastudio.com.