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Enrico Baj (31 October 1924 – 16 June 2003)[1] was an Italianartist and writer on art. Many of his works show an obsession withnuclear war. He created prints, and sculptures but especiallycollage. He was close to thesurrealist anddada movements, and was later associated withCoBrA. As an author, he has been described as a leading promoter of theavant-garde. He worked withUmberto Eco among other collaborators. He had a long interest in the pseudo-philosophy'pataphysics.
He was born inMilan into a wealthy family, but left Italy in 1944 having upset the authorities and to avoidconscription. He studied at theMilan University law faculty and theBrera Academy of Art.
In 1951 he founded thearte nucleare movement withSergio Dangelo, which unlikeabstract art was overtlypolitical. Baj himself was aligned with theanarchist movement. His most well-known pieces are probably the series of "Generals": absurd characters made fromfound objects such as belts or medals.
He made numerous works using motifs from other artists, fromLeonardo da Vinci toPicasso. Sometimes he recreated entire works of other painters.
In 1972 the public display of a major work by Bai,The Funeral of the Anarchist Pinelli (a reference toCarlo Carrà's paintingThe Funeral of the Anarchist Galli of 1911), was banned after the murder of the police officer believed to be responsible forGiuseppe Pinelli's death in custody. However, his work continued to be political. In 1989 he designed thirty marionettes forLe Bleu-blanc-rouge et le noir, an opera by Italian composerLorenzo Ferrero to a libretto byAnthony Burgess, written for the bicentenary of theFrench Revolution. In his last years, he created a series of paintings in protest at the election ofSilvio Berlusconi. He died in 2003 inVergiate, Italy.
