Fausto Melotti was born in Rovereto in 1901 and spent his childhood in Florence. In 1918 he enrolled at the University of Pisa to study Physics and Mathematics and in 1924 he graduated in Electronic Engineering from the University of Milan. During these years Melotti often visited his hometown, whose cultural atmosphere was in full swing; Melotti was frequently in contact with the theorist Carlo Belli, the architect Pollini and the futuristic artist Depero. At the same time he continued his piano studies, becoming an accomplished pianist. In 1928 he enrolled at the Brera Academy in Milan and met Lucio Fontana, with whom he developed a close friendship. Shortly afterwards he decided to dedicate himself fully to sculpture and began to work with monochromatic reliefs. Melotti researched with a wide variety of materials, including wood, wire, plaster and ceramics, and is known for his enigmatic and convincing sculptures, whose symbolic forms express what have been described as inner realms of human experience.

Melotti received multiple awards and recognitions throughout his life, including the Gold Medal at the Munich International Exhibition and the Rembrandt Prize from the Goethe Foundation, Basel.  The National Academy of St. Lucy in Rome named him academic in 1982. Numerous retrospective exhibitions of his work have been held, including at the Galleria Civica d’Arte Moderna in Turin in 1972, at the Palazzo Reale in Milan in 1979 and at the Forte de Belvedere in Florence in 1981. Fausto Melotti died in 1986, in Milan. The day after his death the Venice Biennale opens a major solo exhibition of his work and the biennale awards him the Leone d’Oro posthumously.