Recalling info. about very “early days” !!
I have been updating the SIMBARI DIARIES web-site and have just created a new ‘page’ . . . “The Early Simbari Years . . . 1950s”
You may be unaware of this very important and formative period of this “eclectic” Artist’s long and distinguished Life and Career.
Born in 1927, he was to live through 15 years of a very chaotic European “history” . . . As a young teen-ager, in Rome, studying his ART, avoiding German reprisal “arrests” of young men/boys, to send to ‘work camps’, helping his Mother to feed and cloth his younger siblings, he had HAD to “Grow-up, and be the Man in the Family”. . . and still - - -
A True Renaissance Artist . . . SIMBARI was able to turn his hand to any form within his ART . . . from sketching G.Is’ ‘portraits’ (during their “occupation” of Italy, after WW2 !) to painting the Portrait of his C.O.’s wife and children, when he was ‘conscripted’ into the Italian ‘army/air-force’, in the late 40s (YES ! that’s right . . . how hard was it for him, to “follow the rules!” !!!!) . . and then, a bit later, drawing “fumetti” [cloud strips], with Fellini (?!!), for a weekly “comic book” - - - ! Sadly, I have no “examples” of this period, so I must “start” with 1949 . . . and “Tarantella Napolitana” . . . a colourful, and dramatic Stage Show produced and written by Armando Curcio, an important Italian Impresario of that post-war period.
All Nicola ever wanted to DO was to express his love of Life through
his GIFT . . . ‘becoming famous and making money’ ? . . . when I met
him, for HIM, he was “famous enough” . . . and as long as he could be
FREE and “help his family”, he was HAPPY.
This was La “Dolce Vita”, as
seen through his eyes !!
When I first met Nicola . . . this ‘dedicated’
and ‘private’ man, was hidden behind the “façade” of ‘The Entertainer’
. . . ! As soon as he was IN “public”, he was ON STAGE ,and “BEING
SIMBARI” !!!
Enjoy THIS glimpse of that SIMBARI . . . and his LOVE of “HIS GIFT” !
Back to the top
