ABOUT — Mario Layne Fabrizio

A note for you:

Well hello there, you’ve found my page, and I’m happy that you have.

My name is Mario Layne Fabrizio. I love my full name, it carries a lot, to me - it shows the sides of my family, it shows a life story.

Mario - of Mars, of the sea, warrior, manly (fire and water)

Layne - path, dweller of the road (the Dao)

Fabrizio - craftsman, artisan

Mario Layne Fabrizio

I have this website as a semi thorough portfolio that you can find the things I’ve created over the years.

This intro before my biography and such is necessary to me. I had an artist statement, but it began to feel incorrect again, and again and again. Sure everything in it I agreed with but the notion that I have a statement is ridiculous. People change and they don’t. What I have stuck with is that creating things, “art” (which is a complicated word for me), language, food, music is the essence of what humanity is. They are the ways we communicate past speaking, past doing. Making something that flows through us. Understanding the imperceptible. That visceral nature of spirits moving through us, of our knowledge, of our ideas, of our hearts, our emotions. All I want to do is to facilitate communication on all levels of possibility and bring people together. Too many times do people say, I wish I could have, I should have etc, but you know, with everything we see in the world, the love, the hate, we all in someway die oneday. John Dunsworth who plays Mr. Lahey in Trailer Park Boys says something in a casual interview. “When you’re dead, you’re dead - but you’re not quite so dead yet if you contribute something.”

On this in depth website you will find work that I’ve done throughout the years.

VISUAL ART, COMPOSITION, DRUMS & PERCUSSION, FILMMAKING,WRITING

“Fabrizio’s paintings are unrestrained, revealing complex layers of vulnerability tucked within each stroke.” (Beverly Aarons, Artists Up Close)

PERFORMANCES & EXHIBITIONS

(“biographical” info)

Mario's work has reached audiences worldwide at The Whitney Museum, Salzburg Jazz Festival, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Panama Jazz Festival, Birdland, Kunming's International Drum Festival, Seattle Art Museum, and the Kennedy Center.

He has performed around with musicians such as Cecil Mcbee, Claudio Roditi, Nilson Matta, Santi DeBriano, Joe Morris, Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko, Jason Palmer, Oran Etkin, Noah Preminger and Volker Goetze.

In the past year Mario has released a multimedia project and chamber music album KOSTOCHKI.

Mario's co-led ensemble TROPOS with Phillip Golub can be found here.

Writings of his are found published on his substack.

PREMIERES & “CRITICAL ACCLAIM”

He has performed in the premiere performances of The Black Clown at American Repertory Theatre, Arturo O'Farrill’s Little Tiny Walls and Jason Moran’s STAGED.

London Jazz News describes him as "ferocious but subtle," and Steve Smith of On The Record says that he presents “with assurance, charisma and infectious enthusiasm.”

You can find Mario speak about intuition, ritual and creativity at CREATIVE MORNINGS.

Compositions of his have been acknowledged by the NYTIMES, ALLMUSIC, FRANCEMUSIQUE and you may find interviews about his visual art and multimedia works that are said to be “surreal, trippy dreamscapes” (Seattle Met) in SEATTLEREFINED & KOMO NEWS as the artist of the week, JazzTimes and Earshot.

MARIO’s works have been commissioned by National Sawdust, MadArt and Seattle Art Museum.

Published poetry is released in Ben Mazer’s Art and Letters and has been featured at Boston’s Intercollegiate Poetry Festival and Grolier Po.

He has won awards with various foundations including YoungArts, MassMOCA, Assets for Artists, Jack Straw Cultural Center, Mass Cultural Council, San Francisco EBCP and the Foundation for Contemporary Art. MARIO graduated with a BA in Jazz Studies from New England Conservatory in 2018 studying with Jabali Billy Hart, Cecil McBee, Joe Morris, Vijay Iyer and Jason Moran. He grew up through New Jersey’s Jazz House,a jazz and community program run by Melissa Walker and Christian McBride and worked with Steve Johns, Alvester Garnett, Mike Lee and Radam Schwartz.

The idea of the Renaissance Man is often overused in modern contexts. However, the concept of the ‘universal man’ is rooted in a more expansive, humanistic philosophy that could offer a deep well of value to today’s multidisciplinary artist. When Baldassare Castiglione’s The Book of the Courtier was published in 1528, it both captured and shaped the ideals of the Renaissance era which emphasized the importance of a broad and well-rounded education. According to Castiglione, a courtier should have a deep knowledge of the arts, literature, music, and sciences. This holistic approach to personal development reflects the Renaissance belief in the interconnectedness of all forms of knowledge and creativity, suggesting that true excellence arises from the integration of diverse skills and disciplines. These ideals provide validation and guidance for today’s multidisciplinary artist, who is often confronted with the belief that ‘a jack of all trades is a master of none.’ However, the full quote reminds us that ‘a jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.’ (Beverly Aarons, Artists Up Close)