Pascal Cucaro, 1915-2003

A Set of Circus Paintings

Circa 1950s-1960s

Pascal Cucaro was living in Marin County, across the Golden Gate bridge from San Francisco, and was still actively involved in his artwork before his death. He characterized his painting style by a bold gestural quality, complimented by a thick application of paint. In some cases, the artwork has paint so thick it seems to have been applied straight from the tube. After serving in World War II, he attended the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco, then returned to Europe to spend time in France, Spain, and Italy to study art on his own. Cucaro constantly talked about only two things, painting and love. Those, he said, were his only interests. "I paint all the time, day and night. I have no television, no radio and only sometimes read the headlines of the newspapers." With dark, piercing eyes, a mobile face and expressive hands always on the move, the artist had painted for over 70 years. He worked in the circus during his childhood summers -- the experiences giving him a lifelong interest in clowns and circus life that later influenced his art. He has traveled extensively abroad to find new inspirations for his work -- to Japan, Thailand, Burma, Sri Lanka, China, Greece, Turkey, Israel, Tahiti, and throughout Europe. He has explored a variety of subjects: clowns, circus scenes, boats, street scenes, still lifes, coffee shops, crowd themes (what Cucaro calls "people-people" paintings) animals, abstracts, portraits, and mediums such as oils, acrylics, plastic, ceramics, watercolors, tempera, etchings, india ink, ink/wash, and prints.