Schlossgalerie in #Zurich, #Switzerland confirmed Antonio (#Diego) Voci’s Talents as an #Artist!

“HELGA and DIEGO” by Helga Voci

CHAPTER 4   Schloßgalerie and Switzerland

“Diego had to stay in Marrakech until August, so I decided to take a job in a travel agency in Lugano, Switzerland. This gave me the possibility to work and also to improve my Italian. I was already able to speak, but I didn’t know the grammar, so I took private lessons. Finally in August 1962 Diego joined me in Lugano.

In Switzerland it was for the first time, where Diego was seriously looking for galleries. He went to Geneva, Bern, and also to Zurich. In Zurich he found the Schloßgalerie where the owner was very interested in showing his work. So Diego decided to stay for some time in Switzerland. We rented a boathouse at the lake of Constance close to Zurich and Diego painted. The gallery owner sold quite many paintings; but unfortunately I don`t know the names of the customers and which paintings were sold.

Antonio (Diego) Voci

1963 Studio provided by Schlossgalerie, Zurich Switzerland, owner R. Buri  

At that time we never took pictures of the paintings, which is a pity. I feel very sorry, but I was young.

I had no experience and Diego did not care. If I could go back 50 years, I would do many things completely different. We stayed in Zurich until June 1963. 

During this period Diego went also several times to Aviano, Italy, the American base. He would do caricatures there. At that time a painting was sold and brought to President John F. Kennedy, who was visiting Wiesbaden. (I don`t remember what it looked like).

In Italy, we stayed for some time in Milan, Florence, and Rome. Finally we came to a small medieval town in northern Italy, called Asolo with only 1000 inhabitants. We rented an apartment in a very old house in the middle of the town with a big terrace and Diego made his first real Studio. He mostly sold in Zurich in the Schloßgalerie. But he also worked with a gallery in Milan “Globart Kunstgalerie.””

Courtesy of the Diego Voci Project. Visit www.diegovociproject.com 

Diego Voci on YouTube and Google

AC DV History #37 6/15/2010

AC P of W #207 6/9/2014

#PARIS BEGINS 25 YEAR #LOVE AFFAIR

Chapter Two:  Helga meets #DIEGO in #Paris

“My girlfriend and I decided to go back to #Paris in January 1960 to study for another period. Shortly after that I met DIEGO one Sunday afternoon my girlfriend Eve and I were sitting in a very famous coffeehouse which was frequented by many artists:  Les Deux Magots http://www.lesdeuxmagots.fr/en/ambiances.php#/ambiances.php

Suddenly an Italian sculptor, #Gigi Guadagnucci http://www.gigiguadagnucci.com/ (whom we had already known from before) entered together with Diego (had never seen before) and they came to sit at our table. We had a nice chat and some time later they left.  See Gigi Guadagnucci below.

I didn`t see #DIEGO for several weeks and then one day I was in a Bank to change some money when I heard a voice behind me….”Mademoiselle Helga…”, I turned and saw #DIEGO behind me and he said: “Can I give you a lift with my car?”   I must say at that time I had met many artists who were quite poor, they were all seriously working, they mostly had small ateliers, no comfort, happy when they sold a painting, and then invited the others. And when they didn`t sell – just eating bread and black coffee. Nobody had a car, in fact #DIEGO was called: “el pintor con coche” (which means- the painter with a car). So, when I heard #DIEGO inviting me in his car I thought: this man is showing off, besides the car he was very well dressed, like a businessman. So I said: “I have to go to school and it`s very close, I can walk there, I don`t need a car.” Finally he convinced me to sit in his car and he explained to me that he had seen me, left the car outside the Bank at a corner (double-parked) in order to follow me and that he had to move the car.  See Diego’s in 1954 and an example of Opel Kapitan car below.

Okay, this was the beginning of a 25 years lasting love, we stayed together until December 1985 when #DIEGO died of lung cancer. In #Paris we stayed until October 1960. We had a wonderful time, I became acquainted with another part of Paris, we went to fantastic Restaurants, we met very interesting people, many artists, long discussions in  – La Coupole– http://www.lacoupole-paris.com/en/, a famous place, that has been frequented by such artists as such as Yves Klein (painter), Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir (both writers) and many others.

#DIEGO was living in a small Hotel near the Seine, he did not really work, just a few sketches from time to time and I was wondering how he was financing his living. He made a big secret about his finances. He spent quite a lot of money, he had a big car and he hardly worked. From time to time he went off from #Paris for a few days or a week and then everything went on again. He told me that he was separated from his wife Josiane, maiden name Schäfer, she was from #Geneva, #Switzerland. I know that he had been living with her for some time in #Geneva and also in Wiesbaden but how he made his living at that time I don`t know. Whether he was painting or not, he never talked about it.

Some time later I found out that #DIEGO was doing caricatures in American Officers Clubs in #France, #Germany and later on also in #London and #Spain. He did wonderful caricatures, it took him about 10 minutes to do each one and people were crazy about them, they stood in line waiting for their turn. He made a lot of money with this, I`m sure there are still many Officers who remember him. When I said to him why was he not painting or only a little he said that he was studying people and he would start later on.” – written by Helga Voci

To read Chapter One: https://diegovociproject.wordpress.com/2015/08/05/helga-and-diego-voci-by-helga-voci/

Courtesy of www.diegovociproject.com 

Diego Voci on YouTube and Google.

This site is authorized by Helga Voci, sole owner of the Diego Voci Estate.

6/11/2010 AC DV History #33