Vincent Pirruccio has worked for most of his life as an artist.  His sculptures are magnificent and important.  Books have been written about him, though I’d never seen any of his pieces up close.  I was lucky to be in Taormina where his exhibition, The Geometry of Space, took place last fall.

Pirruccio’s work juxtaposes the massive weight and size of his pieces, against a feeling of lightness and air.  He marks his space, in an overpowering masculine way, while framing it and inviting people in.  He dominates in what looks like solid iron, but creates transparent intimacy.  The heavy metal structures seem totally immovable, requiring cranes to set them in place.  Yet the small ball in each of the works wreaks havoc, sending each piece off balance, skittering into uncertainty.

In Italy, I became acquainted, not only with his work, but with the sculptor himself.  He’s warm and…