Jannis Kounellis born in Greece, 1936; died in Rome, 2017.

He moved to Italy in 1956, where he studied at the Accademia di Belle Arti.

Since the sixties he held a major role in the Arte Povera movement, which was against a traditional point of view in painting and was trying to define a new approach to figurative composition. Using materials such as iron, coal, coffee, fabrics, “living animals” Kounellis created a new language in his sculptures, paintings, installations and performances.