Giuseppe Curonici wrote in the volume “Mario
Bernasconi” Salvioni Arti Grafiche, Bellinzona, May 2005
“We believe that the naturalistic image presence in
the human figure by Mario Bernasconi is on one side a permanence of the
ancient post-classical, a traditional act; but
on the other side may also be an act of contemporary reflection,
just so because it is one of the voices in modern pluralism. The post-
classical naturalism is present in the Italian culture throughout the clima of
the twentieth century, in particular we can contemplate the early work of Marino
Marini (who knew German art directly) In French culture, it is the name of
Maillol, Rodin and others. As for German culture, a master of figurative
sculpture that Mario observed is Lehmbruck, and others, of course, even in
fields far from his own: He loved Klee’s paintings. Mario Bernasconi lived in
Germany from 1927 to 1929, after his marriage to Irma Pannes. The linearity and
the expressive imaging of many portraits, especially feminine, originated from
the various experiences that we will so summarize: naturalism, classical
tradition, and technical mastery, twentieth-century Europe. As a man and
citizen, Bernasconi had a strong psychological and social sensitivity, as an
artist, the apparent visible simplicity in his approach contains a secret but
intense complexity and depth, that gone time has not erased, on the contrary it
helps us to better understand."