CLAUDIO PARENTELA

‘’… sometimes I chase myself, putting myself in my thousand knots. Threads that wrap me up and turn into black and desolate veins. Eyes that brush against me and whisper words to me that I have never told myself. I run I run without ever falling almost flying and I see my naked body covered with a blanket that you gave me so long ago.The contrast is now solved everything is visible I was born in a cloud above the distant hill…’’

‘’… my art is Freaky,stylish,anarchic,colorful, raw and dreamy, romantic,linear, twisted...’’so he says abot his art……it’s contemporary  with a touch ,sometimes smooth other strong,weird,anarchic, schizophrenic….as me…..’’

Claudio Parentela – Biography

Born in Catanzaro (1962, Italy), where he currently lives and works, Claudio Parentela is an illustrator, painter, digital artist, photographer, mail artist, cartoonist, collagist, textile artist, and freelance journalist. He has been active for many years in the international contemporary art scene.

Over his career, he has collaborated with countless contemporary art, literary, and comic zines and magazines, both in print and online, worldwide.

Selected Collaborations (Zines & Magazines)

Among many others, his work has appeared in:

• NYArtsMagazine, Turntable & Blue Light Magazine, Komix, LitChaos, Why Vandalism, Thieves Jargon, 180 Mag, Braintwisting, The Doors of Creativity Anthology, Lo Sciacallo Elettronico, Inguine, Stripburger, Lavirint, Komikaze, Mystery Island Magazine, MungBeing Magazine, The Lummox Journal, The Cherotic R(e)volutionary, Sick Puppy, Malefact, Gordo, johnmagazine, SHITTY SHEEP-Lamette, alchimiadeldolore, Be|Different, UpScene Magazine, Chance, Lucid Moon, Tryst, Abusemagazine, hijacked, Synthesis, filosofem.com, Spartandog, Numbmagazine, Que Suerte, Art Life, Pintalo De Verde, ApArte, Evasion, The Benway Institute, Phony Lid Publications, First Class, This Is Magazine, Diesel, Stu Magazine, Becoming Journal, Exposweb, Pockoville, Crane Magazine, Staplegun, Zupi, Funtime Comics, Untergruntblatte, lartmagazine, Passenger May, Sekushi, Onthecamper, Head Press, Entmoot, You&Me, Rorschach, Fagorgo, B.G.A.Comix, Tracce, Prospektiva, Balkan Spirit, Liberazione.net, Don Juan Online, Emozioni, Digitalabstract, Fatece Largo, Petrolio, Out Zine, Pssst Zine, Bolle Di Cartone, All About Fucking, Gibbering Madness, Rotkop, Anima Mal Nata, ZZZzine, Labour Of Love, Bianco D’Uovo, Bries, Ratriot, Kami Zine, Pus!, Bathtub Gin, Experimental Forest, Stardust Memories, Sunburn, Spaghetti, Plop, Topaz&Psichedelica, Joey and The Black Boots, Blind Man’s Rainbow, The White Buffalo Gazette, Lore, Lunatic, Chameleon, Rigodor, Axolotl, Luca Bonanno Editore, Succo Acido, Pitchfork, Chainsmoker, Surface, Crimson Feet, Skyline, Re:Magazine, Oyster Boy Review, Xero Magazine, Slic, Lit Pot Press, warmtoast cafe, Gumball Poetry, Mineshaft, Milk&Wodka, Yahoo Zine, CartaIgienica, Faestethic, Field Report, Out Of The Blue, Comfusion Magazine, Careful, Ellin Selae, Multistorey, Disegni Di Sogni, Omnibus, The Sound Projector, Gooch Magazine, Laugh Clown Laugh, Shift, Castlemagazine-WAMtv, Vial, Frior, Debilana, Cool Strip Anthology, Territory, Panik, Celulit, Pimba, Otomano, Proper Gander, Container, Mammamiaquantosangue, Cikuta, Traspiratore, Gambuzine, Empty Life, Erroneo, Kalte Tage, Planeta Underground, Cabezabajo, Poetexpress, Nexus, Criade, Love Eternal Lost Infernal, Algiza, Raven, A.K.O.M., Mutate & Survive, Angelflesh Press, Skirocore, Sirota Jerica, Zone Optimiste De Bande Dessinée, Breakfast All Day, The Brown Bottle, Crystal Drum, The Brobdingnan Time, Edgar, Il Foglio Clandestino, Microbe, New York Press, Something Else, O!!Zone, Vitriol, The Flashing Astonisher, Devil Blossoms, Contagio, The Dream Zone, Sinus, Yops Zine, Versus Press, graphola, tribenet, homme-moderne, furtherfield, globevisions, artbabyart, zanzibart, arte.go, designradar, sitart, artfaq, Caveat Lector, lazaruscorporation, ionone, lospaziobianco, youandiproductions, artrenegades, artbureau, cimaisevirtuelle, americanspiritstudios, Choler Magazine, graphiland, artpoetryfiction, catalyzerjournal, ambulant, surfaceonline, lambiek, thebluesmokeband, equilibriarte, subtletea, vu gallery, silverfish, zeroboutique, mondocolorado, artzar, unlikelystories, discord, aggregate, latchkey.net, bewilderingstories, artbarge, yokeandzoom, bhag.net, chaosgeneration, artgalerie34, lobstupidfish, netcells.net, thundersandwich, sensuoussadie, thepedestalmagazine, No More Flowers, Space Junkies Magazine, lucidmoonpoetry, ubq, plumrubyreview, tattoohighway, Burrow Magazine, Swoon Magazine, artistswithoutfrontiers, El Eros Incesante, thedigitalartist, doubledarepress, theaxis, cloudking, monkeyview, Y SIN EMBARGO magazine, Dirt Cheap Magazine, Degrees of Separation, WeirdArt, drunkenboat, erreur404, bigbridge, opensewer, labisagra, Entero'ziNe, arti(e)rumori, botulinux, tenaviv, eternarte, fameweb, erbadellastrega, muse, apprentice-guild, dimensionearte, socialdesignzine, indiejournal, thanalonline, roxybar, genomart, spreadhead, duepunti, AnythingILike, LIFE DURING WARTIME, stategrezzi, agliincrocideiventi, stradanove, Tiscali Arte, hybridstudios, arthal, boxart, eroxe, edizioniriccardi, art.e-zine, SOGNOdiSEGNI 2002, clubghost, musicheart, linguaggioglobale, dwarfcadaver, actarus, xseven, whipart, girodivite, ideerandage, skorieindustriali, wema, robotswillkill, omnisat, H+Art, hoardmag, phueydesign, Culture1.com, arteutile, herecomethewilddogs, RetortMagazine, subculture, lovepain.com, showcomplex, wormwoodchronicles, ArtRemains, gallerythe, prettythings, artsingulier, dustydomino, halfempty, americanartists, escualotis, artactif, webdesignersexperiments, outsiderink, pseudolo, samsara, strangedude, cafeblu, casaditolleranza, stickyourneckout, artrevolt project, Hugo Strikes Back!, literarypotpourri, locomediadub, Mistery Island Magazine, inkpots, artisticdevil, studiocleo, Hermatena, prosetoad, pickwick, rorschachonline, jamcafe magazine, Animals in Mailart, Arts Ablaze Gallery, Filosofem, enfusemagazine, sensuallogic, phirebrush, millenniumartgallery, dork magazine, galleryculture, Escáner Cultural, digitalconsciousness, mousikelab, theshowingplace, invisibleinsurrection, digizine, charnwood-arts, wiredheart, poemus, mindcaviar, Vulcanoidi, The Lamp, Araba Fenice, net-art, artetop, guzzardi.it, mentalcontagion, Cristian S. Aluas CSA Books, Lummox Press, lovechess, Mashnote Magazine, ANIMAL magazine, Wicked, TheArtSource, Not The Tate gallery, nonzi, escmagazine, graphiczone, theamericanskin, undergroundxchange, Silent Presence Gallery, publiceyesore, locusmag, Unwound, Buiten Westen, armando adolgiso.it, artdish, the-vu, bonobo, progettobabele, subsystence, samsaraquarterly, traspi.net, arteecarte, galerieserrano, vicodelferro, woesteweduwe, topolin, placesofart, falsestart, GLUBIBULGA', cafepress, annotazioni, electronic-art, ilbolerodiravel, citizen32, paroladidonna, lilacedius, essendemme, DarkArtists, tangents, riflessioni, jackmagazine, Exquisite Corpse, obscurity webzine, UBQ, Rivista Anarchica Online, bedfordnovel, wormsarts, atopiaonline, dorkmag, pigmag, ROJO®magazine, redfoxpress, HOARD MAGAZiNE, NoTxt Magazine, filtered-magazine, thewissahickon, rockheals, CimarronReview, madhattersreview, Whalelane, BoundlessGallery, aliens-cafe, masthead, blank-magazine, ConArt, zafusy, P.F.S., EOTU Ezine, OK ARTE, SpokenWar, Bant Magazine, lunaticchameleon, fearsmag, fifthstreetreview, Pulled Up Mag, litvision, ESC! Magazine, Animal Raw Art, Spent Meat, artuindenfair, takingitglobal, Half Empty, iconique, smallspiralnotebook, Transmission Magazine, sidewalkpoetry, peaceseed, monophobic, thepoisonedapple, two-zero, kenagain, HEAD magazine, zerooneart, virtuallyinfamous, Illustrationmundo, tenthousandmonkeys, CHANCE MAGAZINE, channel83.gallery, soupskin, thelemming, funhousemagazine, gallery-21, leportillon, raggededgepress, Bonobo galerie, hexvalue, netcells, retortmag, locomedia, Tokyo Cow, kufia, Crack! Fumetti dirompenti, Corps Possibles - Identités Possibles, artrecess, Roxy Web, biographic.ubq, deliriohouse, poopsheet, illu-station, Federico Feroldi Arte Contemporanea, The House of Tate, otro.it, GQ, La Tora Web, Doodlers Anonymous, Anteism, vorticeargentina, 3rdthought, edificewrecked, sugardrum, curiousculture, wrath.de, Magpie Magazine, Lazer ArtZine, DoDmag, Dark Sky Magazine, Paraphilia Magazine, New Chemical History, Cut-click Magazine, GOB Magazine, Inprint-Mag... and the list goes on.

Exhibitions & Gallery Showings

In 1999, Claudio was a guest artist at the BREAK 21 FESTIVAL in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

His obscure, wild, and psychedelic artworks have been shown in numerous physical and digital galleries worldwide, including:

• Milan: La Casa Di Tolleranza, La Cueva-No Art Gallery, Spazio Aurora, Hoepli International Bookstore Exhibition Space, Dynamo, Zoccoletti e Zoccolette (Biokip Gallery @ Pervinca OpenSpace), Ocho Delicate Nature.
• Rome: Forte Prenestino, Forte Prenestino (Skorie Industriali), Metaverso, Brancaleone (Human Emotion Project), Casal Bertone (#2AdunanzAutogestitArtisti).
• Florence & Tuscany: Tenax, Teatro Studio di Scandicci, Ambasciata di Marte, Klyk, Creativa 2006 (Rignano sull’Arno), Panda Club (Pistoia).
• USA: Andenken Gallery, Trainside Gallery (Haverhill), Blah Blah Gallery, Scaremongering Gallery, The Wurst Gallery (Portland), Cranky Yellow (Saint Louis, MO), Black Maria Gallery (Los Angeles), Green Art Fair Miami 08, Umber Studios (Minneapolis), Diesel Gallery (New York), Little Cakes Gallery (New York).
• Europe & International:
  • Slovenia: The Pina Gallery (Koper), Galerija DLUM (Maribor).
  • Netherlands: Galerie Slaphanger (Amsterdam), Centre for Graphic Arts HogeDRUKgebied (Rotterdam).
  • Spain: Tabula Rasa (Barcelona), Fira Magica de Santa Susanna, Guapopo Gallery, Ocho Global Group Exhibition (Barcelona), ®out 3ª Mostra Internacional d'Art Urbà Publicitari (Barcelona).
  • UK: Atkinson Art Gallery (Southport), Hoody Art Gallery (London), The Woom Gallery (Birmingham), Italian Institute of Culture (London).
  • Poland: Glowinski’s Library (Olesnica).
  • Switzerland: Museum of Porn in Art (Zurich).
  • Lithuania: Gallery 101 (Kaunas).
  • Israel: Inspiration Art Exhibition 3 (Tel Aviv).
  • Brazil: Sechiisland's Micro Gallery.
  • India: CeC 2009 Uttarakhand.
  • Australia: Third Drawer Down.
• Italy (Other Locations): Girasole (Villa Basilica), Castello di Rivara (Torino, 2 shows on Arthur Rimbaud), San Carpoforo Church / Accademia di Brera (Milano), Libreria Segnalibro (Ferrara, Tarocchi Evoluti show by Associazione Hermatena), CAM - Casoria Contemporary Art Museum (Naples), XM24 - Da Marisa Gallery (Bologna), Zo Cafè (Bologna), Achab (Catania - and all other Sicilian stops of the SognoDiSegni exhibition), Barcode (San Benedetto del Tronto), Circolo Culturale Bertold Brecht (Milano), NO.HUMAN.NO.CRY (Monza), I Maledetti del Rock Italiano (Città di Castello), SUBject Festival (Bologna).

He is also highly active in the global Mail Art community, participating in countless projects worldwide.

Music Collaborations & Publications

Claudio has collaborated extensively with numerous bands and projects across industrial, noise, experimental, electronic, harsh noise, death metal, goregrind, and punk music.

As an illustrator, he has brought to life the poems, stories, and music of:

Gavin Burrows, Harry Wilkens, Vittorio Baccelli, Claudio Morici, Alberto Rizzi, Cristiano Quadalti, Shannon Colebank, Gary Sneyd, Robert Smith, Michael Kriesel, Mark Sonnenfeld, Nathan Medema, and Richard D. Houff.

He has also co-drawn collaborative pieces alongside:

Maurizio Bianchi (M.B.), Elvi Athan, Marcel Herms, and Kapreles.

Published Books & Graphic Booklets:

• Il Ratto Bavoso & L’Incubo Dimezzato (Innovation Studio - B.G.A. Comix, Italy)
• Fashion Robot (David Lasky, Seattle, USA)
• L’Agnello Sacrificale e la Salamandra Impiccata al Patè 666 (Medicina Nucleare, Italy)
• Storie (Progetto Siderurgiko, Italy)
• Eudemoni & Piccola Trilogia Nera (Criatu Prod., Italy) – Poems by Alberto Rizzi & Cristiano Quadalti, illustrated by Claudio Parentela.
• Jeanne Dark You Got Balls & The Frogs’ Ballet (Self-produced)
• Black Kisses and Other Stories & The Book Of Secrets (La Cafetiere Editions, Belgium)
• Endless Tongue (The Benway Institute, USA) – Texts by Richard D. Houff, illustrated by Claudio Parentela.
• Else Beds (JesusBunny Press, Canada) – Poems by Nathan Medema, illustrated by Claudio Parentela.
• The Savage Soldier (Luca Menichini Prod., Italy)
• Derrumbe (Valter Casini Ed., Italy)
• Matter Ballet (BoneWorld Publishing, USA) – Poems by Michael Kriesel, illustrated by Claudio Parentela.
• Social Reform (Whizzbanger Prod., USA) – Poems by Shannon Colebank, illustrated by Claudio Parentela.
• Le Miopi Della Montagna (Underground Press, Italy)
• The Weak Cuckoo (Gran Negro Publisher, Spain)

He has also designed Tarot decks:

• Two cards for the Tarocchi Evoluti project (Associazione Hermatena, Italy).
• Two full custom decks: I Tarocchi dell'Iride and I Tarocchi Dell’Archetipo Blu (Hermatena Publishers, Italy).

Contact & Web Links

Claudio Parentela

Via F. Crispi n. 79, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy

• Mobile: +39 3793548515
• Email: claudioparentela@gmail.com

Websites & Social Media:

• Il Ratto Bavoso
• I Believe in Black Aliens
• Wix Portfolio
• Altervista Main Site
• TikTok
• MySpace
• X (Twitter)
• Instagram: @cparentela | @claudioparentela62 | @claudioparentela2
• Tumblr
• Facebook
• Flickr
• LinkedIn
• Talenthouse

Art Blogs:

• The Extra Finger
• Foggy Grizzly
• LiveJournal
• Elvisinh
• The Thermostat and the Green Dragoon
• Diabetic Dew 555
• Cosmic Crystals & Dirty Pigs
• Coward Sneeze
• Variations in Northern Degradations