Sassu developed in a highly consistent manner in the 1940s and 1950s the realistic painting style he had already announced in 1936, answering the questions put him by the art critic Lamberto Vitali. His realism turns around 1950 toward scenes from the contemporary work world. A painting like The Tuna Kill fits into this aspect of his art, depicting a scene of tuna fishing in Sicily in dramatic tones: red, the color of blood, this time is not used in a symbolic, evocative way but primarily for its realistic value, an aspect of the world of work. Besides the series of professional fishing scenes, other pictures in this vein include paintings of the port of Savona and individual pieces like the Carrettiere, now in the Galleria d’Arte Moderna di Suzzara.