What inspires you?

Daily outdoor walks are my main source of inspiration: I find balance and freedom in retracing my steps, enjoying the lights, diving into the smallest details of the scene. Also, when I touch the bark of old trees I feel connected to earth and my perception of time expands, allowing calm feelings and a sense of perspective.

Describe your creative process.

I love to add textural effects, using acrylic colours, gesso, binders mixed to sand. I like to use both dense and diluted colours – preferably earthy natural tones – to shape nuanced effects, while with metallic pigments I create light reflections. This allows me to bring depth and tension to the painting, generating contrasts – smooth-grainy, fine-coarse, matte-shiny – that I try to combine into a global feeling of gracefulness and balance. This is my way to invite the viewer to embrace visual, tactile and temporal dimensions into their experience, to ‘play’ with the painting and, perhaps, to imagine what is not even there.

What are 3 words that best describe your work?

Ethereal, Textured, Merging

Who are some artists that have influenced your work?

I deem my works are mainly influenced by modern and contemporary artists. In particular I’m drawn by abstract expressionists such as M. Rothko, J. Pollock; neo-expressionists like A. Kiefer; abstract artists such as Zao Wou-Ki. I love the works of masters such as J.M.W. Turner and C. Monet.

What is the most important tool when creating your work?

Sand, metallic pigments, acrylic colors, water spray, my hands, old brushes and music!

What is the best piece of advice you have been given?

Have the courage to be true to yourself

Where do you go for inspiration?

I often walk in the woods and in the mountains close to where I live. I also love to look at all forms of water: rivers, little streams, the sea, or the laguna in Venice. All hours of the day are good, but the early morning is the one I prefer the most.