Biography

Jon Corbino was born in Sicily but came to the United States at age 8. He attended the Ethical Culture School in New York and studied art at the Art Students League and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. With early recognition — his work was shown at the Art Institute of Chicago when he was 21, and he had a solo exhibition in Oberlin, Ohio at age 23 — his reputation grew rapidly, and his career flourished in the 1930s and 1940s. Corbino met his wife, 22 years his junior, while she was studying at the Art Students League in 1950-51. The couple moved to Sarasota, Florida, where they remained the rest of his life.

Critical Analysis

Corbino's early work was characterized by its drama and its color; critics called his style "heroic". This style was certainly popular in its time, and Corbino paintings were acquired by major museums across the country. Following Corbino's move to Sarastoa, his style and focus changed. He became enamored of circus scenes (Sarasota was the winter home of the Ringling Brothers Circus), and his palette shifted to softer, less intense colors than he had previously used.

Murals

• Long Beach, New York - Post Office: The Pleasures of Beach Bathing

References

1. Janis Londraville, Richard Londraville, Corbino: From Rubens to Ringling. Excelsior Editions , Albany, NY (2011).
2. Hurricane Wreck (Richard Norton Gallery).
3. Jon Corbino (Smithsonian American Art Museum).
4. Jon Corbino (Caldwell Gallery Hudson).
5. Jon Corbino (American, 1905–1964) (artnet).
6. Jon Corbino Biography (Facebook).
7. Jon Corbino Dies, New York Times July 11 (1964).
8. Jon Corbino, N.A. (1905-1964) (Lee Corbino Galleries).
9. Susan Rife, A long time coming: Sarasota artist Jon Corbino is the subject of new biography, Herald Tribune: Ticket Sarasota April 10 (2011).
10. Susan Rife, Marcia Corbino, arts writer, dies, Sarasota Herald-Tribune November 15 (2015).