Was born in Rome in 1935 by family of humble origins and strong tradition of socialist and fascist. The first name is Joseph, alias Frank. Third of three brothers, fails to finish school up to the war.
1941 Causing the death of his father, is forced to provide for her sick mother, inventing odd jobs: port carts to the market, with brush-boy becomes a barber, working in a laundry, then a 'Autotappezzeria. Say there, according to Gino De Dominicis, comes the use of scrims. The socks, which are present in the early paintings are often donated by friends. Good upholsterer, usually prepares the canvases of the paintings themselves. He did not attend schools of painting and in 1949 his mother died, an event which marks him deeply. Othello's brother, the future secretary of the Communist Party of Cinecittà, educates him in accordance with precise policy guidelines.
1957 created the first work: the need to paint explodes as an affirmation of freedom. The bombing of San Lorenzo, who attends as a witness upsets him deeply and focused future painting where, with the use of materials such as gauze and dark red colors denounce a strong debt to Burri.
1950 was the first collective exhibitions, at the Galleria La Salita, Rome, with Festa e Uncini.
1960 is his first solo exhibition at Galleria La Salita.
His brother, Otello, organizes the prize for painting Cinecittà, where a monochromatic artist, canvas, jute, is denied the commission of, among others, by Guttuso, and Del Guercio Trombadori. Works such as beggars, of that year, with the poetic tangents denote informal.
1961/62 He partecipates with Lo Savio, Festa and Schifano at the the exhibition "New Perspectives" of Italian painting, at Palazzo Re Enzo in Bologna.
He became a friend of Schifano, known in the party: they share the popular origins, rooted sense of reality, the need to go beyond the informal experiences. This is a generation of artists united by a close relationship marked by existential war are called masters of pain, a qualification that sets them apart from Art Pop, whose strangeness refers to an autograph letter of the same Angels. In subsequent years, then becomes a friend of Guttuso and then by Arnaldo Pomodoro and the poet Francesco Serrao.
1963 at J Gallery in Paris, his works are next to those of Bruce Conner, Michael Todd, Christo and Kudo: Catalogue by Pierre Restany. At the Galleria La Tartaruga in Piazza del Popolo, participates in a collective historical: 13 painters in Rome. The work of Angeli is glossed by a poetic text by Nanni Balestrini.
1964 at the Galleria L'Arc Alibert, Rome, presents Capitoline fragments: these are wolves, eagles, fragments of collective symbolism. Participates in the Venice Biennale, presented by Calvesi: is the historical Biennial of Pop Art in Italy. The artist presents La lupa and Quarter Dollar.
1965 he was invited to the ninth Quadrennial Roman cemeteries of this period are the partisans, complete with stars and hammer and sickles.
1967 He is at the Biennale of Sao Paulo with Half Dollar: the famous half-dollar, zoomed in detail.
1968/70 there is a great political and ideological, who see him committed to the issue of the Vietnam War. Meets Marina Ripa Di Meana, at the Spoleto Festival. With the woman weaves a tumultuous relationship and resulted in faithful friendship. And 'her on several occasions to emphasize the artist's deeply human side, creativity released from any market logic, the bohemian life full of debt, the desire to die young, untouched by the cynicism and disillusionment that the disappointments in time lead.
1972 presents some interesting work at the Gallery Sirio for the exhibition Film. Begins to appear in his production the face of Marina Ripa di Meana, to coincide with the themes of the plane, the obelisks, small landscapes. He exhibited at the Tenth Quadrennial of Rome.
1975 He knows Livia Lancellotti, who became his companion and will give him, in '76, a daughter, Mary. He became a friend of Jack Kerouac, taken from a bar, from which is expelled drunk. He is hosted in the study of via Germanico, engages with the artist the composition of "Deposition of Christ", then purchased by Gian Maria Volonté.
Participates in the 1978 Venice Biennale, curated by Bonito Oliva in the section "L'iconosfera urbana". We also present a short film.
1981 he was invited with some drawings, along with Dorazio, De Chirico, Fontana, Guttuso, Maccari, Modigliani, Morlotti, Pozzi, and others in a group exhibition at the Galleria La Scaletta of Reggio Emilia.
1982 participates in the collective 30 years of Italian Art 1950-80, held at Villa Manzoni, Lecco. Composed works marked by the influence of Kees Van Dongen (Thinking in Van Dongen).
1984 begins the era of Puppets, a sort of ironic self-portrait of the artist, then exhibited at the Belvedere of San Lucio.
Participates in the 1986 Quadrennial XI.
1988 He is dedicated a retrospective to the House of Machiavelli (1958-72) near Florence. Presented by Marisa Vescovo, he exhibits at Galleria Rinaldo Rotta of Genoa. He was invited to the Cultural Circle John XXIII for the Biennale of Sacred Art: with him, Enzo Cucchi, Sandro Chia, Mimmo Paladino and Mario Schifano.
In the same year, Franco Angeli dies of AIDS at age 53. The funeral is celebrated in the Church of Santa Maria del Popolo, choise by mate Livia for the boundless love of the artist Caravaggio (one of the altar is in fact dominated by "La conversione di Paolo").