Virgil Cantini

Virgil D. Cantini
Virgil Cantini instructing a class at the University of Pittsburgh during the 1956-57 school year
Born	February 28, 1919 Italy
Died	May 2, 2009 Pittsburgh
Nationality	Italian-American, U.S. Resident since 1930
Education	Manhattan College, BFA, Carnegie Mellon University, MFA, University of Pittsburgh Hon. D., Duquesne University
Known for	Enamelist, Sculptor
Notable work	"Man" sculpture (1965) "Joy of Life" (1969)
Awards	Time Magazine "Hundred Leaders of Tomorrow" (1953) Guggenheim Fellowship (1957) Pope Paul VI Bishop's Medal (1964) Davinci Medal (1968)

Virgil David Cantini (1919–2009) was an enamelist,sculptor and educator. He was well known for innovation with enamel and steel and received both local and national recognition for his work, including honorary awards, competitive prizes and commissions, along with a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1957. Cantini long served as a faculty member at the University of Pittsburgh, where he helped to create the Department of Studio Arts. A longtime resident of the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Cantini died on May 2, 2009 at the age of 90. Today, many of his large scale works are on display throughout the city of Pittsburgh.

A native of Italy, Cantini and his family emigrated to Weirton, West Virginia in the 1920s. He initially attended Manhattan College in New York before transferring to Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon) where he received a football scholarship and earned All-America status as a quarterback. His studies were interrupted by World War II, in which he served the Army making topographical maps and models in North Africa.

Following the war, Cantini received a bachelor’s degree in fine arts in 1946 from Carnegie Tech and married a fellow art student, Lucille Kleber. Cantini went on to earn a master’s in fine arts at the University of Pittsburgh in 1948, and was granted an honorary doctorate in fine arts from Duquesne University in 1982.

Cantini and his wife settled in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh where they had two daughters, Maria and Lisa, and lived for 60 years. His home on the 200 block of South Craig Street also served as his studio and gallery.