The Master was born with Art in his Soul and with hands of gold because anything he approached to do became a masterpiece. As a Self-taught artist, for him, Sculpture was the expression of the burning Fire of Creative Genius. Inspiration and Passion guided him in the creation of His Works.

Master Sculptor Gaetano Piro was born in Francavilla Fontana in the province of Brindisi in Puglia (Italy), to a humble family of farmers who, with great sacrifices, supported his inclination for study, allowing him to complete his educational path from elementary school to a degree in 'Economics and Commerce' at the University of Bari, after which he became a beloved and highly esteemed teacher. Despite the few resources available in his family of six, serenity and joy always accompanied him, along with a brilliant imagination that he demonstrated in various fields from a young age.

The Master was a special Man, an extraordinary Man, a truly out-of-the-ordinary Person, characterized by a sweetness, sensitivity, grace, generosity, kindness beyond the ordinary, great enthusiasm, and a special Light in his eyes that shone like those of children who see the world as something new and beautiful with innocence.

He loved Life, Music, his fellow man, simple things, and he loved Olive Wood; when a trunk or a piece of it touched him deeply, it was because the Sacred Fire of inspiration was beginning to burn within him, leading him to create wonderful Works.

His artistic ability as a Sculptor was born with him, in the sense that he was a self-taught Sculptor, along with genius and talent that allowed him to create marvelous Artworks from trunks and pieces of Olive Wood and from Stone, which he also loved to work with, using simple and rudimentary tools such as chisels and gouges of all sizes and hammers such as chisels and gouges of all sizes, hammer, files, glass and sandpaper.

All His Works express His soul but also Passion and Love, Purity and Spirituality because, as He used to say, he sculpted guided by Celestial Inspiration. The Peace and serenity that enveloped His soul are emanated from the faces of His sculptures that ranged from the sacred to the profane.

His favorite subjects were indeed Christ, Maternity, Love, and Woman. These themes, although so different, were for Him an emanation of sacredness, purity, clarity, transparency, the whiteness of a Soul with its feet firmly on the ground but with its gaze turned toward eternity.

Also, the representation of Woman, for Him, was not just a nude but He said that Woman is the temple and vessel of the Spark of Creation. With His life, He conveyed Love and the message that Life is beautiful and is far beyond materiality and that everything is sacred.

This aspect is especially marked in the faces of His Jesuses, who although depicted on the Cross or in the midst of the Passion, they express serenity, sweetness, and much Love with a hieratic, calm, noble, and tranquil gaze, never showing a grimace of pain, because pain is transcended not with resignation but with complete trust and reliance.

The Master sculpted small pieces of wood as well as large trunks (1800kg), working with meticulous and painstaking patience to bring out what the entire material contained. He created many works, both small in size and human-sized, including a crucifix measuring 2.10 m, and several women in plastic poses. He used to work outdoors in the countryside by himself, under the veranda in the company of his beloved animals.

He has created works of remarkable artistic value and has been appreciated by many professionals in the field who have published him in various national and international art books.

On December 14, 2021, he was awarded the Civic Honorary Mention posthumously for his artistic and moral merits by the City of Francavilla Fontana, his hometown in Italy, in the province of Brindisi.

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