What inspired you to create art and become an artist? (events, feelings, experiences...)
I was always inspired by the thoughts that I couldn't do something I wanted... .Don't compose, work traditionally within the task borders". Back when I was studying piano, my professor (now my colleague), told me not to compose but to go with a typical school like style. A rebellion immediately broke out in me, and nothing came out of that "school creation".
The very next year I enrolled in the composition department at the Faculty of Music and successfully completed my studies. After that, it was my turn to work in the theater, and much later, painting as today's calling!
I started painting quite late, one could say, by chance, eight years ago.
I was involved in photography and while working in 2017, I noticed that there were many interesting works of art on the websites where I exhibit my works. I came up with the idea that I could try to paint something, and that is when my cycle of almost 1000 works in the ink technique began, black and white color was my world at the beginning.
Incredibly, in the first year of my work, I became a bestseller on a recognized world website for selling art works. That encouraged me to slowly open the door to colors and start creating in color. I worked on
paper for years until my friend persuaded me to start my creativity on canvas. Canvas was a completely new world for me in which I was quite clumsy.
Since 2021, I have been starting and to this day I have been creating bravely, although I know that the life of a painter is a difficult life, but also a life colored with colors. Today it is my hunger, desire, habit and artistic routine! My paintings exude serenity and cheerful colors, but behind them lies years of hard work with many hours invested and emotions woven into every corner of the artwork.
What is your artistic background, the techniques and subjects you have experimented with so far?
For many years I experimented with small formats, drawings and ink techniques. During those years, a large cycle of works was created in which the only subject was the female body in traditional and abstract forms. Today, my work is based on a thematic diversity that includes underwater, nude, architecture and portraits. I have remained faithful to the traditional technique of acrylic on paper and canvas.
What are the 3 aspects that differentiate you from other artists, making your work unique?
1) The intricate details and diverse colors employed to construct the composition of the painting.
2) The strategic combination of colors and the prevalent use of a palette consisting of soft and pastel tones.
3) An endeavour to expand the limits of conventional themes.
Where does your inspiration come from?
My inspiration comes from the underwater world full of mystery and unexplored beauty. From its silence, colors, forms and light that changes underwater.
What is your artistic approach? What visions, sensations or feelings do you want to evoke in the viewer?
I want my paintings to evoke serenity and relaxation in the eye of the observer.
What is the process of creating your works? Spontaneous or with a long preparatory process (technical, inspiration from art classics or other)?
I usually start from a simple theme and figuration that is abstracted in the process of work. The final result is most often very different from the initial form.
Do you use a particular work technique? If so, can you explain it?
I use the acrylic technique on canvas or paper. First, I apply a combination of primer (acrylic primer) and paint, which I use to prepare the base for work. A well-chosen shade of the surface is the key because it is an important starting point for determining the color of the painting itself.
Are there any innovative aspects in your work? Can you tell us which ones?
I am constantly trying to develop my own abstract style in which I explore physical phenomena through colors, shapes and compositions that are not immediately recognizable, but cause a deep reaction and understanding in the viewer.
Do you have a format or medium that you are most comfortable with? If yes, why?
I prefer large formats because they give me space for more detailed work and the creation of expressive, yet stylish, multi-layered paintings.
Where do you produce your works? At home, in a shared workshop or in your own workshop? And in this space, how do you organize your creative work?
My artwork is created in my home studio where everything is at the service of my creative oeuvre.
Does your work lead you to travel to meet new collectors, for fairs or exhibitions? If so, what does it bring you?
I follow what is happening on the world art scene via social networks. In the same way, I get in touch with collectors all over the world.
How do you imagine the evolution of your work and your career as an artist in the future?
I imagine the evolution of my work in the future through the conquest of new techniques, stylistic forms of expression and through the breakthrough into new markets.
What is the theme, style or technique of your latest artistic production?
The theme of my latest artwork is underwater, an underwater world with a central human figure. The style is a combination of figuration and abstraction in acrylic technique on the largest format I have worked on so far.
Can you tell us about your most important exhibition experience?
I present my artwork through digital social media where I would like to highlight a very important phenomenon, and that is the moment when your work goes viral and travels the entire planet. It seems to me that this is a broader and more effective way of communicating with the public and potential buyers about your work because it gives a better insight into your work and allows for a much larger audience. Not only does it bring better insight in that way, but through criticism and various comments you can get a broader picture of the tastes and interests that prevail at that moment in the subject matter, style and technique of the contemporary era. This can certainly be helpful in further creativity.
If you could have created a famous work in the history of art, which one would you choose?
And why?
It would certainly be one of Gustav Klimt's genius works in which, apart from symbolism, emotion and figuration, an abstract, floral and filigree environment dominates, which is often richer than the portrait itself or the figures in the center.
If you could invite one famous artist (dead or alive) to dinner, who would it be? How would you suggest he/she spend the evening?
I would like to invite Tamara de Lempicka, an intriguing painter, with a sophisticated and bohemian spirit. It would be nice to exchange experiences with her about the creative process, about the hours of work on the huge pile of orders she had in her artistic zenith, before leaving for the USA. I would love to visit the galleries with her and hear her opinion on the work of other artists.
Olimpia Gaia Martinelli
