Futur-Dadaist Julius Evola (1915-1921)

Julius Evola was one of the protagonists of theearly 20th century Italian avant-garde.

A multifaceted and controversial figure, a thinker with a traditionalist view of civilisation in contrast to the modern, democratic and materialistic world. His art investigates an inner and ideal dimension in line with European abstract trends, and in some ways comes close to the concept of abstractionism formulated by Vasily Kandinsky.

He was a pupil of Giacomo Balla and debuted by interpreting Futurist language in compositions with accentuated dynamism and particularly vivid colouring, expressions of hallucinated vision and transcendental occult forces. After distancing himself from the Futurist movement, in 1919 he came into contact with Tristan Tzara, the spokesman of Dadaism. Evola became the top Italian representative of Dada and devoted himself to works depicting inner landscapes, full of hermetic and alchemical references.

After announcing his artistic suicide in 1922, a long oblivion followed that ended in 1963 with the rediscovery of his art by Enrico Crispolti and the publisher Vanni Scheiwiller. This renewed interest aroused by his works prompted Evola to devote himself to painting again, producing a series of replicas of his historical paintings and other psychedelic and alchemical works.