born in varese on november 10, 1910, angelo frattini became an orphan at the age of 9. his artistic formation took place initially in naples and subsequently in milan. frattini served his italian military service in naples, where he attended giovanni de martino's evening classes and got to know gemito's sculpture. in naples he also frequented the galleria d’arte moderna and the national archeological museum. for most of his youth he was self-taught, and was influenced by the end of ‘800’s art.