Artist Returns to BBAC with Show Inspired by Italian Heritage

In the latest exhibit at the (BBAC), the student becomes the master as former BBAC student Anthony Macioce puts his work on display until Aug. 22.

“I was born in Italy, so I tend to paint a lot of Italian cities,” Macioce said. “I like sports paintings, and landscapes are just nice. My colors are very vibrant. Once in a while, I try to do grayed-down paintings, but eventually, I go back and brighten them up. That’s just my personality in painting.”

Macioce was 12 when he came to the United States from Alvino, a small town 90 miles southeast of Rome. He proclaims that whatever his approach, one thing is certain: His art reflects the spirit, the passion and the colors of his Italian heritage.

“I still haven’t found what I think is my style,” Macioce said. “People tell me I have one. I guess I have a style as far as color scheme, but I’m still searching for that thing that says, ‘This is what I really want to do.’

"For a while, I thought it was sports figures," he said. "Whatever triggers my imagination — I could be watching a movie, driving down the street — I start painting. Most of this is made up of my own imagination.”

Macioce’s paintings are displayed in the long, narrow corridor called the DeForrest/Watson Ramp Gallery at the BBAC — the ramp referring to the slight incline as viewers walk through the gallery.

“The DeForrest/Watson Ramp Gallery is for emerging artists that have solo shows,” said Cindi Mills, vice president of programs at the BBAC. “Emerging does not mean age. It means they’re starting to show their work and get it around.

"We try to have the ramp gallery opening with three to four other galleries in the building on the same night so we can get a crowd,” she said. The BBAC hosted a reception July 22 to celebrate the opening of the lineup of summer exhibits.

Kaee Johnson, an art lover who attended the opening reception, has been coming to the BBAC to get his art fix for three years.

“I liked the impressionist Anthony Macioce because I like his style, and he paints very diverse topics,” Johnson said. “It was the first time I’ve seen his work. I would recommend people come.”

Macioce attended the University of Notre Dame for chemical engineering but eventually graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. He later took art courses at Wayne State University and at the BBAC while working at various advertising firms throughout Metro Detroit. Now retired, Macioce said he plans to resume classes at BBAC in acrylics.

“I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t paint,” Macioce said. “I think I find that most people can be artists. Some of my friends that have come here, they started the same time I did, taking classes here. There’s a woman named Lynn — she didn’t know the difference between a brush and the paint. You should see her work now, after four or five semesters.”

Even Macioce is amazed at how far he’s come. A Birmingham resident has already expressed interest in purchasing “Colosseum,” one of his acrylic paintings, priced at $3,000.