Painting as an instinctive performance of decisions: resolving, erasing, building, cutting, sticking, composing, combining, covering, scratching, adding, removing, breaking, tiling, vandalising, re-covering, and resuscitating are some of the qualities I desire in my paintings, but also come from my curiosity...
Read MorePainting as an instinctive performance of decisions: resolving, erasing, building, cutting, sticking, composing, combining, covering, scratching, adding, removing, breaking, tiling, vandalising, re-covering, and resuscitating are some of the qualities I desire in my paintings, but also come from my curiosity and learning appropriate techniques from other spheres of society.
I am looking to reproduce memories and atmospheres; how signs and layers coexist, relate, and create relationships. There is a sense of decay – that all is subsequent after time. Yet, rather than the romanticised idea of abandonment, my works dwell on the incompleteness of memories and that which remains.
I draw inspiration from nature, from cycling around the city streets, and from the places where I eat. I make careful observations of the public and private landscapes. I focus my gaze on public toilets, cafes (trattorie, osterie), snack bars, construction sites, my grandparents’ house, or familiar secondary places that we encounter but tend to overlook. I also draw inspiration from the history of Art. Bodegones, still lifes, palimpsests, medieval frescos, ornaments, and architectural details have always activated my curiosity.
I observe, research, and include non-conventional materials in my practice. My curiosity leads me in many directions and allows me to find the wrong methods for the right reason. Reflecting on my paintings, I have been using materials that suggest other qualities, such as wood and tiles that channel and reference everyday public spaces. I make deliberate choices to employ unconventional artistic methods and materials, challenging traditional approaches. It is for me a concrete way of thinking, a form of realism.
I want my paintings to evoke a sense of familiarity, inviting viewers to feel as if they are remembering something, even if they cannot quite place what or where it is.
Ultimately, my practice proposes a question: “as if?”. As if my work is cut out of a wall? As if it’s a ready-made object? As if it’s a Painting?
