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Benini captivates the eye imagination and soul through profound art in several dimensions.
Italian by birth, he's exhibited internationally since the 1960s. After he and wife Loraine
moved to Johnson City in 1999 they opened their own exhibits indoors and out as Benini
galleries and sculpture ranch. Along with their personal collection and Benini's sculptures,
artists from around the world will contribute to a public gallery against a public backdrop.
inside step into Benini's gallery and adjacent studio where he paints through the night thriving
on four or five hours of sleep In this gallery you will see about a 45 year span of his paintings.
for about a 20 year time period he painted the symbol of the rose Then he went into the
geometric period where he shaped the canvases not in the traditional square corners but
shaped them according to the design now those are blended, hand blended acrylics on canvas
from that period he went into the more recent work which are the abstracts he was recording
chaos in the face of God series which also included the blended acrylics and then also
dropped pigments but he and I met in Gainsville I was at the university of Florida completing
my masters degree there in journalism and communication and I was sent to interview
him He's fond of saying the interview aint over yet but we've been together about 35
years. They moved to the hill country ranch owned by president Johnson for his 147 acres
that distance Benini from distractions But it was the view that sold them. It was a tremendous
reason for us to come here, high up on the mountain where our home is we came for privacy
at the time. It gave us a lot of serenity Benini felt that the Texas hill country, it
reminded him a lot of the Mediterranean region where he was born and he liked that We got
involved in this project because we started placing sculpture that we owned on the property.
Then they opened the outdoor gallery to friends from around the world We allowed them to pick
sports on the ranch for their placement. Many sculptors ave a studio where they create the
work but perhaps not a place to showcase it The sculptors love their work outdoors. Going
outside is totally different. Mother nature is there with all of her impositions and all
of her beauty. to share that experience with the public they opened the sculpture ranch
opened selected days free of charge. Seeing them at different times of the day different
times of the year they change, they respond to the weather the sun sets behind them, the
birds landing on them we've had a number of birds build nets in the sculptures so there's
an interaction of nature and art the human element plus mother nature is ever changing
everyday and the difference of the pieces in nature it's all quite fascinating. When
a sculptor arrives they all tour the ranch to find the most resounding location and orientation
to it's background. One difference from an indoor gallery is mounting that's sturdy enough
to withstand occasional fierce winds that whip around the mountain. Many of the sculptures
are for sale, a lot of them we own, and those are not for sale we do not require information
from these sculptors having said that many of them insist on returning something. They
say that in token Benini doesn't want to make money off of any artist so we have an arraignment
that if they choose to return something we put it in an acquisition fund and any of those
funds that accumulate we use that to buy one of their sculptures. In route, when springtime
wildflower people don't have much to see, there is always a bluebonnet at the ranch
every season paints a different native background with a few surprises from resident wildlife
Benini's indoor gallery documents his journey as an artist. This is more like a big cavern
and I have people walk in here and say this is like a temple and there is a serenity here.
some people come for hours and they stay here and that's fine. It's almost spiritual if
they choose that. They have their own relationship with the work and the space he works with
acrylics very very early on in the late 50s early 60s he painted with some oils in Italy,
that's all they had in Italy at that time. When benini arrived in the states he discovered
acrylics. They engaged him with their color brilliance and permanency. to this day he
does a blending process no air brush, he hand blends but his technique requires high humidify
and low temperatures. When it gets really hot and really dry he cant pull those paints
like he needs to. And even then he is working with seconds because any artist that's worked
with acrylics knows as quickly as you're putting them down, they are trying to dry on you.
Benini doesn't use the retires but he really goes after that color brilliance the humidity
and the temperature. He'll work in a studio with humidifiers going and cold temperatures
but even then sometimes it's problematic. The last couple of summers have really encouraged
us to look where he might have cooler climates. As Benini and Loraine explore their next destination,
the property is up for sale. Still, their voyage to the hill country will live on. It's
been a pleasure to introduce art to a lot of the school systems to a number of people
who perhaps haven't had access to art in the way that some of us in the cities have had
i mean some of these ranchers who have walked in and they weren't quite sure what was here
some of them even stood at the doorway as polite as could be and tipped their hat and
said howdy ma'am may I come in and it's been such a pleasure to share something different
you know, with them and then to have them come back with their families what a complement.
Benini's not only been generous with his land, he's given his time to countless students
encouraging the next generation of artists. This gives them the opportunity to see the
journey of one artist. And they can ask anything they want and they can learn what worked for
him and one of the things he tells them always though is read read read. He's a strong advocate
of the importance of reading and studying what came before in the history of art. We
have probably 25000 books on the property, different libraries on the property and he
stresses the importance of reading and the importance of trying different materials,
finding your own voice, finding your own style.