Guglielmo Donzella was born in Udine on February 18, 1960. During his early years at elementary school in Palazzolo dello Stella, he was tasked with creating the school’s first newsletter—an initiative that sparked curiosity and interest because it had never been done before at that school. During his teenage years, together with some friends, he devoted part of his enthusiasm to writing a newsletter for young people titled “Risveglio,” with the support of the town’s parish priest, Father Luigi Milocco.
His educational path led him to study to become a surveyor, a stepping stone toward a world he had always loved: architecture. During his early years of high school, he had a literature teacher who would influence his interest in the arts—not only painting and architecture but also literature and books. This marked the beginning of an inner, human, and spiritual journey that would lead him to abandon the idea of continuing his academic studies in favor of entering the world of work.
After his early years as a sales representative for a major multinational cosmetics company, he became sales manager for a paper mill in Verona. His world thus began to open up. It was a return to his great passion: publishing, graphic design, and visual art—the world he had always dreamed of and sought out. Through the world of paper, in its infinite variations, he became a key consultant for major publishing, packaging, and advertising projects.
In 1991, due to a serious accident, much of his career was abruptly cut short, leaving him confined to a wheelchair. Surrounded by his family’s love and the responsibilities of parenthood, he overcame the early years of this “new life” and founded his own publishing house: *La voce della Bassa*, publishing a weekly magazine dedicated to giving a voice to the many cultural, sports, and volunteer organizations operating in the municipalities of the Bassa Friulana area. Playing on the acronym, he changed the publishing house’s name to “a voce Bassa,” embarking on a new professional path that would lead him to publish numerous books aimed at children, as well as titles focused on tourism, local culture, and nature.
Meanwhile, he never neglected his passion as an artist. Using the pointillism technique, he creates rather unique works inspired by church stained-glass windows. To depict an image or a story, he breaks it down into small squares or tiles, which he later reassembles to give the entire work a complete meaning.
A deeply personal and spiritual journey will lead him to discover a new artistic language—one that is entirely his own and completely innovative—which he will define as: the “oltr’È.” Through elementary particles (friezes) placed side by side, he seeks to represent the capacity to give strength to the most varied forms of life, nature, and emotions—each with its own identity, linked to the others by an indissoluble desire and ability to coexist and seek, within the “oltr’È,” a common point of reference and reunion.
