Born in Turin, Italy, in 1929, Riccardo Licata lived for a short time in Paris and later moved to Rome where he remained until 1945. Since 1946 he has lived between Venice and Paris.

After studying at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice, in 1957 he received a scholarship from the French government that allowed him to experiment with colour, engraving and new creative techniques.

A painter, printmaker, mosaicist, sculptor and designer, Licata began exhibiting his works in 1949, with the group of young abstract painters of Venice. In 1951 Licata had his first solo in Venice, and since 1952 he has participated in biennales around the world, including Venice, Sao Paolo, Tokyo, Paris, Alexandria, as well as the Quadrennial of Rome and the Milan Triennale.

Licata 's work has been deeply influenced by music, and for this reason his pictorial signs and graphics evoke musical notes and scores. Through the materials he employs the artist expresses a universal language using a complex script allowing him to deal with his own personal reality.

His work is in major museums, such as the Museum of Modern Art, Chicago, the Museum of Modern Art in Paris and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.