Birolli was born at
Verona to a family of industrial workers. In 1923 he moved to
Milan where he formed an avant-gardist group with artists such as
Renato Guttuso,
Giacomo Manzù and
Aligi Sassu. In 1937 he was a member of the artistical movement
Corrente di Vita. In the same year, he was arrested by the Fascist government for opposing the regime. He subsequently cast painting aside to devote himself to supporting Communist causes and, later, the partisan resistance. After
World War II, in 1947, Birolli moved to
Paris. Here his painting style changed under the influence of
Henri Matisse and
Pablo Picasso, moving first to a post-
Cubist position and then to a somehow abstract form of lyrism. He died suddenly in
Milan in 1959. His son Zeno Birolli (1939–2014) was an art critic and historian. ==External links==