Pianissimo by Carmen D'Avino

Pianissimo (1963) by Carmen D'Avino. Found via arthur magazine.

Carmen D'Avino (1918–2004) pioneered animated short films, and was also one of the leading figures in the avantgarde film movements of the 1950s, 60s and 70s.

A fine art student at the Art Students League in New York City in the 1930s he also became interested in the medium of film. This continued at his art studies at Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris were he complemented his paintings with experimentation into film and documentation.

D'Avino worked, studied and exhibited all over the world, as well as making films for commercial companies (read further here).


His film 'Pianissimo' was nominated for an Oscar for best animated short film ('Oscar Best Short Subject, Cartoons') in 1964.

The British Film Institute describes 'Pianisssimo' as:
"An animated film about what could happen if a berserk painter were left alone in a room with a mechanical piano, a record player and several tins of paint".


Carmen D'Avino has also worked extensively with sculpture and oil painting, part of the same examination of and experimentation into shapes, colours, and forms.


"No matter the medium, D'Avino transports viewers of his art to a whimsical, non-threatening, yet distracting place where eyes and minds are never at rest.

What they see is pleasing, sometimes comical, but disturbing, with the ability to agitate.

With the grain of wood or his palette of vivid colors, D'Avino can engulf people in a tapestry of intricate designs, rich with detail and texture, which grow with organic vitality".