Page 33 - Studio International - July 1965

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was based upon the use of 'objets trouves· skilfully
and creatively brought into play). He is also a 'mime· in
his own right; indeed he is a mime of unique quality,
whose double is nowhere to be found: his 'perform­
ances·, which are almost always in private or intended
for small groups of the cultural elite, are deliveries which
achieve something dependent upon though yet quite
distinct from mime and gesture. His picturesque­
pictorial style is similar to that of many modern artists of
varying persuasions-from Pollock to Afro. from
De Kooning to Rauschenberg. Such mimetic effects
are popular in the artistic circles which Toti has fre­
quented in the last few years: New York-where he
stayed in 1956 and again in 1960; Paris-where he
spent two years from 1961 to 1963, and, of course,
Rome-the very source of life and work-where he has
a small though important following of disciples and
admirers. Many of his young students at the Academy
even today consider him to be the only 'master' whose
. work can suitably be said to define 'The School of
Rome'.
Indeed, it is true to say that certain apparently external
aspects of Scialoja's activities are necessary elements in
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