Metello Merlo Artwork valuations, appraisals and auction estimates

Metello Merlo was born in Milan on 27 June 1866 and learned to paint from his father Camillo. In 1904 he moved to Turin and was a pupil of Vittorio Cavalleri and Andrea Tavernier. Read the full biography

Metello Merlo was born in Milan on 27 June 1866 and learned to paint from his father Camillo. In 1904 he moved to Turin and was a pupil of Vittorio Cavalleri and Andrea Tavernier. During his training, he concentrated on landscape painting and acquired the ability to compose works and choose cuts thanks to Cavalleri, while from Tavernier he learned to manage color.
Initially, his style was descriptive and analytical, typical of the late 19th century, but he later adopted a more synthetic approach. In the last decade of his life, his works seemed to be a reflection on Cézanne's achievements.
His main research was colour, which he practiced through the continuous exercise of life drawing. In 1951, he was one of the founders of the Gruppo Bianco e Nero, together with his brother-in-law Felice Vellan and other colleagues. This group promoted the importance of drawing in all its many artistic expressions.
Despite his long artistic career, Metello Merlo remained marginally touched by the research and aesthetic experiments that characterized the twentieth century, without however remaining contemporary. He was also succeeded by his son and grandson, thus forming three generations of painters from the Merlo family.