A neighborhood role model, all around gentleman, Santo Matarazzo passed away last week at 79
By Jason Moriber • Oct 29th, 2008 • Category: Loose EndsSanto Matarazzo was a people person. Often outside his brownstone, leaning against his gate up the block from the local bakery, speaking to neighbors as they passed. If you were lucky, or if he caught the spark in your eye, he’d invite you in, or more like through his house, to his backyard sculpture studio where he crafted large, realism-style, plaster sculptures for eventual bronze casting.
Our initial Wise Elephant offices were in his neighborhood, and I had the regular pleasure of stopping by to chat with Santo, mostly about how he wanted to donate his sculptures (typically of famous people such as Rudolf Guilaini) to the city, to towns, to places, he wanted the sculpture to live, the money didn’t matter, it was about the art.
I loved thinking of him, knowing he was there, working away in his studio on “public art” and that he was equally as interested in knowing what “you young folks” were up to. I’d stop by for a minute and end up there for much longer. He was a perennial optimist, a devout people’s man, and a warm, smiling, inviting handshake to anyone who passed by.
God bless you Santo, safe travels!
LINK: http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/31/43/31_43_ee_matarazzo.html
Jason Moriber is a veteran product/project/marketing manager, underground artist/musician, and online community developer, Jason expertly builds/produces/manages clients' projects, programs, and campaigns.
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How wonderful that so many people knew and loved Santo the way you did. I am his neighbor out in Mastic Beach, where he and his wife have a summer home. He used to joke with me and say “Why do you come here so much. I am just an old man. Don’t you want to be with people your own age?”. Ummm, no. I highly valued the time I spent with him, because he was so different than most people are today. I would lose track of the time when I went to their house. I consider myself lucky to have known him.
A brilliant, wonderful man. And his wife, Lucia, is just as wonderful.