Born in Tripoli, Libya, at the time an Italian colony, at young age Calabria moved to Rome, where he graduated from the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma.
[1][2] In 1958, he held his first solo exhibition at La Felucca gallery in Rome, and one year later he took part in the VIII Rome Quadriennale exhibition, eventually returning in the 1972, 1986 and 1999 editions.
'Pro and Con') with some art critics and colleagues, notably Renzo Vespignani.
[1][2] In 1964, he exposed at the Venice Biennale, and between 1974 and 1978 he served as a member of its board of directors.
[4] Calabria was an artist influenced by Marxist aesthetics, and the main focus of his works were labourers, working environments and social changes.