Charles Fazzino is an American pop artist, known for his

silkscreen Screen printing is a printing technique where a mesh is used to transfer ink (or dye) onto a substrate, except in areas made impermeable to the ink by a blocking stencil. A blade or squeegee is moved across the screen to fill the open mesh ...

serigraphs in a 3D pop art style. His artwork incorporates influence from urban landscapes, sporting events, and modern celebrities. As described in the book about Fazzino titled The Master of 3-D Pop Art, "An innovative and imaginative storyteller, Charles Fazzino serves up a bevy of details in his unique three-dimensional creations. His collectors marvel as much at his ability to capture the entire essence of his subject matter in one statement, as they do at his use of vibrant colors, his whimsical sense of humor, and his hand-assembled multi-layered artistic style. Although, the snappy titled often gives a clue to the content of each painting, it can take years of careful observation to discern all of the details in a single Fazzino image. One of Fazzino's greatest joys is to observe visitors at exhibition of his work. 'I love to watch the smiles form as people begin to recognize elements of my paintings,' comments Fazzino. 'They point at the images as if inserting themselves into the stories. I watch that and I'm reminded of why i paint. It's all about celebrating the joy and fun we have as human beings on this planet."

Background

Raining_Gold_II_by_Charles_Fazzino_(Side_View)

Born in 1955, Charles Fazzino is the son of a Finnish sculptor (Irene) and an Italian mode shoe designer (Salvatore). He took his first formal art class as a 7th grader in 1967 and later graduated from the

School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

in 1977 with a degree in Bachelor of Arts. Today, Fazzino's artwork is sold and exhibited in galleries, museums, and art shows in more than 20 countries worldwide. A majority of his event-specific artwork for major events represents The Super Bowl,

The Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

, The Pori Jazz Festival,

Major League Baseball All-Star Game The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual professional baseball game sanctioned by Major League Baseball (MLB) and contested between the all-stars from the American League (AL) and National ...

, and the

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...

s. Fazzino is most well known for the three-dimensionality of his

serigraphs. While exhibiting in the juried arts fairs in Florida in 1980, Fazzino attended a 3-D paper tole class in an arts supply store. He experimented with the technique and showed his first three-dimensional print at the Greenwich Village Art Show in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

that May. Fazzino entered the gallery circuit when he sold his first 3D offset

lithographs Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

to a gallery in

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. He began using the

silkscreen printing Screen printing is a printing technique where a mesh is used to transfer ink (or dye) onto a substrate, except in areas made impermeable to the ink by a blocking stencil. A blade or squeegee is moved across the screen to fill the open mesh ...

process in 1986.

The Fazzino 3D process

Fazzino's three-dimensional creations are labor-intensive, which require several stages to complete. The artist begins with a flat drawing that is worked and re-worked by Freelance illustration artists under his guidance for weeks or even months before the limited edition process even begins. The flat artwork is sent to a silkscreen printer who spends months hand-printing the flat fine art reproductions. The flat sheets return to Fazzino's studio where more than 40 freelance artists who complete the 3D process work at home, all handcut with an Xacto knife, to cut out the elements from cutout sheets and mount them onto heavier boards using Silicone glue to raise and create the 3D layered effect. Fazzino often equates the process of building up the layers of artwork to "layering it like a lasagna." The 3D artworks are finished off by hand with glitter and

Swarovski Swarovski (, ) is an Austrian producer of glass based in Wattens, Austria, and has existed as a family-owned business since its founding in 1895 by Daniel Swarovski. The company is split into three major industry areas: the Swarovski Crystal ...

crystals.

Special event commissions

NFL Super Bowl Charles Fazzino's art has been featured in every Super Bowl for the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

since the 2001

Super Bowl XXXV Super Bowl XXXV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Baltimore Ravens and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for ...

Tampa Bay, Florida Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and shallow estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west-central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The largest freshwater in ...

. Fazzino was profiled by

CBS News Sunday Morning ''CBS News Sunday Morning'' (normally shortened to ''Sunday Morning'' on the program itself since 2009) is an American news magazine A news magazine is a typed, printed, and published magazine, radio or television program, usually published ...

with

Charles Osgood Charles Osgood Wood III (born January 8, 1933), known professionally as Charles Osgood, is an American radio and television commentator, writer and musician. Osgood is best known for being the host of ''CBS News Sunday Morning'', a role he held ...

on Charles Osgood Sunday in

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

on February 3, 2013. He also created a painting for

Super Bowl XLVIII Super Bowl XLVIII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos and National Football Conference (NFC) champion Seattle Seahawks to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for th ...

in 2014, where the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

defeated the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

MetLife Stadium MetLife Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, 5 mi (8 km) west of New York City. Opened in 2010 to replace Giants Stadium, it serves as the home for the New York Giants an ...

, as well as The New England Patriots 2015 win in

Super Bowl XLIX Super Bowl XLIX was an American football game played to determine the champions of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2014 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Conf ...

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

. Fazzino's licensed commemorative painting for

Super Bowl LI Super Bowl LI was an American football game played at NRG Stadium in Houston, Houston, Texas, on February 5, 2017, to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2016 NFL season, 2016 season. The American Football Confer ...

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, valued at $15,000 UDS, was unveiled at a private reception. The painting was later auctioned off and proceeds were donated to the WithMerci Foundation. During the week leading up to

Super Bowl LIII Super Bowl LIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2018 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Confe ...

in Atlanta, Charles Fazzino appeared in a segment for Inside Edition.com during which he was interviewed by the program's guest Super Bowl correspondent Kelleth Cuthbert, aka the Fiji Water Girl. Fazzino commemorated his twentieth Super Bowl for the

during

Super Bowl LIV Super Bowl LIV was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2019 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Kansas City Chiefs defeated the National Football Conferenc ...

in Miami. The artist appeared at The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and at the Super Bowl Experience in the Miami Beach Convention Center alongside former NY Giant

Mathias Kiwanuka Mathias Kagimu Kiwanuka (born March 8, 1983) is a former American football defensive end. He was originally drafted 32nd overall in the 2006 NFL draft. He played college football at Boston College. He earned two Super Bowl rings with the Giants ...

and Miami Dolphin

Davon Godchaux Davon Montel Godchaux (born November 11, 1994) is an American football defensive tackle for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU from 2014 to 2016. He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins ...

. Major League Baseball All-Star Game Fazzino has created artwork for more thirteen

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

All-Star Games. In 2014, when the All-Star Game was in Minneapolis, he partnered with The Minnesota Twins Community Foundation to donate artwork and raise funds to support the charity's mission. *2016 All-Star Game in San Diego *2018 All-Star Game in Washington DC *2019 All-Star Game in Cleveland *2021 All-Star Game in Denver *2022 All-Star Game in Los Angeles Little League Baseball Fazzino was commissioned to create the official artwork for the 75th Anniversary of

Little League Baseball Little League Baseball and Softball (officially, Little League Baseball Inc) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizationGallery at Penn College
Fazzino's official art was also unveiled during the series and installed in the World of Little League Museum. Daytime Emmy Awards *2007 Daytime Emmy Awards *2008 Daytime Emmy Awards *2011 Daytime Emmy Awards Grammy Awards *2004 Grammy Awards - Fazzino created the official artwork for the 46th annual Grammy Awards. He joined the ranks of artists such as world-renowned architect

Frank Gehry Frank Owen Gehry, , FAIA (; ; born ) is a Canadian-born American architect and designer. A number of his buildings, including his private residence in Santa Monica, California, have become world-renowned attractions. His works are considered ...

, Photographer/Filmmake
David LaChapelle
and Mosaic Artist Roy Feinson, who have all been commissioned by the Academy before and since. United States Olympic Committee *2016 - Rio Summer Olympics *2013 - Warrior Games - Fazzino commissioned by the

United States Olympic Committee The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) is the National Olympic Committee and the National Paralympic Committee for the United States. It was founded in 1895 as the United States Olympic Committee, and is headquartered in Col ...

to create the official artwork for the 2013 Warrior Games. The Games are an annual competition between wounded warriors from each of the military services and from the UK. Theater Fazzino's foray into the theater came in 2012 when he collaborated with the producers of ''The Ride''. The Fazzino Ride was an interactive tour of Manhattan designed by Fazzino and Ride producer Richard Humphrey. The innovative tour bus featured Fazzino's artwork on the outside and on high definition monitors on the inside. The experience — part tourist attraction and part performance art — took riders on an adventure through the streets of Manhattan as experienced through Fazzino's 3D pop art world. In the end, The Fazzino Ride was nominated for a 2013

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Fo ...

for Unique Theatrical Experience. Winterfest Boat Parade Charles Fazzino was commissioned to create the official artwork for the 50th anniversary of the Fort Lauderdale Winterfest Boat Parade. Toys for Tots Secretary of the Navy

Carlos Del Toro Carlos Del Toro (born 1961) is a Cuban-American businessman and retired United States Navy officer who serves as the 78th United States Secretary of the Navy since 2021. Early life and education Del Toro was born in Havana, Cuba and immigrated ...

unveiled Charles Fazzino's official artwork for the 75th anniversary of the US Corps. Reserve

Toys for Tots Toys for Tots is a program run by the United States Marine Corps Reserve which distributes toys to children whose parents cannot afford to buy them gifts for Christmas. The program was founded in 1947 by reservist Major Bill Hendricks. The ...

in 2022.

Major works and public installations

JFK International Airport Collection for American Airlines at Terminal 8: The collection includes a 6' by 7' rotating 3D sculpture of an

American Airlines American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...

plane entitled ''From New York...to the World'' and a 13' three-dimensional mural and mobile that welcomes travelers to New York City as they travel down to baggage claim. * 2016 Westchester Medical Center commissioned Charles Fazzino to decorate the outside of their Mobile Health Coach. * 2018 Stamford, CT commissioned Fazzino to paint outdoor kiosks * 2018 The city of New Rochelle, New York commissioned Charles Fazzino and his artist daughter Heather Fazzino to create and unveil the first of a series of public sculptures installed around the city to promote the "Ideally Yours" campaign. * 2018

NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its d ...

commissioned Charles Fazzino to create an artwork celebrating their historical achievement of

NBC Sunday Night Football ''NBC Sunday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''SNF'') is an American weekly television broadcast of National Football League (NFL) games on NBC and Peacock in the United States. It began airing on August 6, 2006, with the Pro Football Hall of Fa ...

becoming the number one show in prime time for seven consecutive years. Charles Fazzino, along with NBC Sports Chairman Mark Lazarus and Sunday Night Football director Fred Gaudelli unveiled the work at the network's NBC Headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut. * 2019 Fazzino was commissioned to create two 16-foot tall steel sculptures, two indoor murals, and a seating area for Fiesta, a new state-of-the-art shopping mall in Busan, Korea.

Museum installations and exhibitions

Charles Fazzino with 3-D popart plane sculpture at JFK airport

In 2010–2011, Fazzino hosted a major museum exhibition titled "The Faces of Fort Lauderdale" at the Museum of Art , Fort Lauderdale. The exhibition celebrated the 100-year history of the area and Fazzino contributed to it in his role as the official artist for the centennial celebration. Fazzino's first major museum exhibition in Germany took place from April 27 through June 22 at the International Academy of Art in Hembach. The district of Kreis Duren invited the artist to exhibit at the Academy and commissioned him to create an edition of artwork titled "For the Love of Kreis Düren". In 2015, Fazzino was chosen to participate in a group show at the Coral Springs Museum of Art in Florida. The show, titled "The Art of Pop & Comics" featured eight pieces by Fazzino, including a tribute to the Masters titled "A Cartoon Celebration of the Masters," in which Fazzino weaves popular cartoon characters into pieced-together scenes by masters such as Vincent Van Gogh, Leonardo da Vinci, Edvard Munch, and Jackson Pollock. "This is a tribute piece," said Fazzino. "The paintings I chose from the Masters are so incredibly recognizable, as are the characters now interwoven throughout them. It's a meeting of two worlds with two different languages that come together in this one, intricately assembled, composition." In 2015, Fazzino was commissioned create an artwork celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Singapore. He made his debut in the country in May 2015 to unveil the work and participate in several receptions and a media tour. In 2017,

Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Nassau County The Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Nassau County (HMTC) is a Holocaust memorial, a museum and a tolerance center in Glen Cove, on the North Shore of Long Island in New York State. The museum and tolerance center is situated within th ...

opened a Fazzino exhibit in their museum titled "The Heroes of the Holocaust," featuring several new original works, and a series of plexiglass sculptures paying tribute to those who saved the lives of Jews during and after World War II. The limited edition artwork created specifically for the exhibit, "After the Darkness" was unveiled by

Dani Dayan Dani Dayan ( he, דני דיין; born 29 November 1955) is an Argentine Jews in Israel, Argentine-Israeli entrepreneur and Consul General of Israel in New York since August 2016 and Yad Vashem chairman since August 2021. Dayan is an advocate for ...

, Counsel General of Israel in New York. "Tackling a project of this magnitude and intensity was very difficult for me because of all the sadness associated with this horrific time period," said Fazzino. "My artwork tends to be bright, colorful, and uplifting. People say it makes them happy. But then I discovered all of these incredible people…everyday people who sacrificed their own lives and the lives of their family members to save others. Their stories are inspiring. I really felt that given the current political climate in our country, it's even more important for people to remember what happened. And my mission is to document not only the thousands of heroic acts that took place, but also the hope and the resilience of the Jewish people. This exhibit celebrates the ability of the people of our world to survive a horror like the Holocaust and in the end, become even stronger and more full of hope and love than they were before." In 2021, Charles Fazzino was commissioned by the National September 11 Museum & Memorial to create an image in tribute to the 20th anniversary of the

World Trade Center World Trade Centers are sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association. World Trade Center may refer to: Buildings * List of World Trade Centers * World Trade Center (2001–present), a building complex that includes five skyscrapers, a ...

terrorist attacks. The artwork was unveiled in a ceremony at the Museum with Anthoula Katsimatides, 9/11 Family Member; Joseph Esposito, Former Chief of Department,

NYPD The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...

; Salvatore Cassano, Former Commissioner,

FDNY The New York City Fire Department, officially the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), is an American department of the government of New York City that provides fire protection services, technical rescue/special operations services, ...

; Salvatore Carcaterra, Former, Deputy Chief, NYPD; and San Panchal, Former 1st Grade Detective & 9/11 Hero, NYPD,

Bernie Williams Bernabé Williams Figueroa Jr. (born September 13, 1968) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player and a musician. He played his entire 16-year career in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the New York Yankees from 1991 through 2006. ...

, Retired NY Yankee,

Pete Alonso Peter Morgan Alonso (born December 7, 1994), nicknamed "Polar Bear" and "Big Meat Pete"," is an American professional baseball first baseman for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut during the 2019 season and br ...

, NY Met.

Global exhibits and appearances

Fazzino's work is exhibited in many countries around the world, including: *Denmark *Dubai *Finland 2009 - Official Artist Pori Jazz Festival in Pori, FinlandHammonds, Julia, "Fazzinon Kuulu 3d Esillä Porissa" ''Porin Sanomat'' (Finland), August 7, 2009, p 18 *France 2013 - The official artist for the annual Foie de Lyon festival in Lyon, France.Lombard, Gisèle, "Charles Fazzion <>" ''Le Progress'', November 3, 2012, p 7 *Germany *India 2015 Joint Exhibition with

Dudu Gerstein David (Dudu) Gerstein ( he, דוד (דודו) גרשטיין) (born 14 November 1944) is an Israeli painter, sculptor, draftsman, and printmaker. He began as a figurative painter and was recipient of the Israel Museum Prize for illustration. A ...

(David) at Habitat Centre in New Delhi *Japan *Luxembourg *Singapore *Spain *Switzerland *South Korea Korean International Art Fair, 2016-2019 *United States 3D Studio Gallery, Santa Barbara, CA Ocean Galleries, Stone Harbor, NJ, Wentworth Galleries in Atlanta, GA; Boca Raton, FL; Hollywood, FL; Fort Lauderdale, FL Short Hills, NJ; Alexandria, VA; Bethesda, MD; King of Prussia, PA Art One Gallery, Hollywood, CA Barker Animation, Cheshire, CT

Books written about or by Fazzino

*June Vollman, Andrea Ruoff-Appel, Shari Ruoff & Charles Fazzino: Regards From Broadway Andrea Ruoff Art Associates, 1991, *Heike Theuerkauf, Charles Fazzino, Marshall Lee, Phillip Davies: Charles Fazzino. Balance House, 1996, *Julie Maner, Charles Fazzino: Charles Fazzino, the master of 3-D pop art. Te Neues Verlag, 1999, *Julie Maner, Charles Fazzino: Traffic 9 to 5, 24/7 Museum Editions, Ltd, 2004, *Frank Radice, Vida Radice, Charles Fazzino: Sam Katz on the Loose! Random House Children's Books, 2005, *Julie Maner, Charles Fazzino: Fazzino's Passport to Our World Museum Editions, Ltd, 2007 *Charles Fazzino, Julie Maner: Now Playing on Broadway. Museums Edition Ltd., 2010, *Julie Maner, Charles Fazzino: O' Beautiful For Spacious Skies. Museums Edition Ltd., 2014, *Julie Maner, Charles Fazzino: The Sun Shines Bright Over the Big Apple. Museum Editions, Ltd., 2020

Intent

Fazzino has stated on numerous occasions, and in many ways, that his intent as an artist is to create a body of work that reflects the highlights of popular culture back to his audience: reminding them of who they are, where they come from, and what moves them as human beings. He once wrote "...all of my art is a labor of love for all of you who have enjoyed my work for so long. When we're all gone and many years have passed, I hope that our descendants will look at one of my paintings and say 'that's a Fazzino'. He was that artist who painted those zany pictures of what life was really like back then.'"Maner, Julie (1999) Charles ''Fazzino, The Master of 3D Pop Art''teNeues"

References

;Sources * * * * * *
CBS Sunday Morning Video
* * *Maner, J (2014). ''O Beautiful for Spacious Skies'', *Maner, J (2007). ''Fazzino's Passport to Our World'', *Maner, J (1999). ''Charles Fazzino: The Master of 3D Pop Art'',

External links

*
Fazzino's Blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fazzino, Charles 1955 births Living people 20th-century American painters American male painters 21st-century American painters People from Shelby County, Alabama Artists from New Rochelle, New York American pop artists American people of Finnish descent American people of Lithuanian descent 20th-century American male artists