(2) Agostino Dessi (B.1952) Alice Atelier Italian Papier Mache Theater Masks

Lot description

(lot of 2) Italian artisan polychromed papier mache Carnival/ theater masks, each signed Agostino Dessi (Professor Agostino Dessi, Sardinia, Italy, b.1952), from the Alice Dessi Atelier, Florence, Italy, retaining adhesive maker's label verso, including: (1) rabbit, dated 1998, approx 15"h, 9.5"w, 6"d; (1) grinning Pierrot, dated 2004, approx 9.25"h, 7"w, 3.25"d; 1.5lbs total Provenance: From the estate of Connie Todd (Constance Clare Todd, Austin, Texas, 1941-2024). For many years, Connie Todd was the personal assistant to prominent Austin-based book publisher, photographer, and author Bill Wittliff (William Dale Wittliff, American, active in Austin, Texas, 1940-2019). Bill Wittliff wrote celebrated screenplays such as "Lonesome Dove" (1982), "Legends of the Fall" (1994), and "Barbarosa" (2000), and founded the regionally-oriented publishing company, Encino Press, with his wife Sally in 1963. Connie Todd later served as the founding director of the Wittliff Collections at Texas State University from 1997-2010, transforming it into an internationally-acclaimed collection through noteworthy acquisitions such as the Cormac McCarthy archive. After retiring from Texas State, Connie Todd spent time traveling the world with friends and family.