Minimal Surfaces

Davide Prete

March 31, 2021 to April 24, 2021

Davide Prete’s work has focused on new technologies such as 3D printing and laser scanning combined with traditional metalsmithing techniques. For his latest projects, mathematical equations (especially Scherk Collins surfaces) provide him with a pretext to connect figurative images with a new language, to discover what he called “a new form of shamanism.”
Prete was born in Treviso, Italy, and introduced to the art of metalsmithing by his father Alessandro and by the sculptor Toni Benetton. He studied jewelry and metalsmithing at the Institute of Art in Venice and, in 2003, obtained a degree in architecture. Prete worked as an architect for several Italian architectural firms, especially with Toni Follina. After meeting his wife in Zimbabwe, he moved to the United States. In 2010 he earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in Sculpture from Fontbonne University, Saint Louis, where he studied under the guidance of Hank Knickmeyer and developed a personal sculptural process, mixing traditional metal casting and new technologies such as 3D printing and laser scanning. He moved to Washington, DC, and started working as a professor of fine art later that year. He is an assistant professor at the University of the District of Columbia and a lecturer at Catholic University of America. Davide recently finalized his training with a certificate in Digital Fabrication at fabAcademy and at MIT xPro. Prete’s work has been shown in both national and international venues (Italy, Germany, Czech Republic, England, France and the USA). His latest public work “Soundwave Art Park” has been installed in August at the Greenbelt / Fort Dupont Park in Washington DC. Please visit the artist’s website at www.davideprete.com to learn more about his work.