Born in Montecchio Emilia, near Reggio Emilia, Italy, on October 10, 1975, Michelangelo Galliani has emerged as one of Italy's most compelling contemporary sculptors. Trained at the prestigious Academy of Fine Arts in Carrara, where Michelangelo Buonarroti once selected his marble, Galliani combines Renaissance craftsmanship with contemporary vision. Beyond his sculptural practice, he teaches Marble and Semi-Precious Stones Techniques at the Academy of Fine Arts in Urbino, passing on centuries-old traditions to a new generation. What distinguishes Galliani's approach is his unusual technique of carving marble manually with surgical accuracy, creating works that blend classical grace with modern fragmentation.

His sculptures often employ the Renaissance "non finito" technique, leaving surfaces deliberately unfinished to evoke archaeological discoveries or ancient fragments. Yet these human forms are then juxtaposed with metals such as brass, lead, iron, wax, and gold to achieve a distinctive contemporary identity. His latest major exhibition, "Alkemica – Martirio e Rinascita" (Alchemy – Martyrdom and Rebirth), recently concluded at Rome's historic Biblioteca Casanatense.

Presented during the Jubilee Year by Cris Contini Contemporary gallery, the show explored alchemical transformation through 18 monumental display cases in the library's baroque hall, where bronze and marble sculptures on lead cartouches - some embellished with gold leaf - illustrated the alchemical journey from nigredo (decomposition) to albedo (purification). Galliani's career includes notable exhibitions such as "Underground Fever" (2023) at London's atmospheric Crypt Gallery and participation in the 2022 Venice Biennale. Among his accolades are the prestigious Franco Cuomo International Award (2019) and the Fabbri Award (2007). His works grace prominent collections internationally, including those of Steenbergen in Manhattan, New York, and Nettles and Armour/Clark in Washington, DC, marking his growing presence in the American art landscape.