February is the month of black…
What is a color? Its definition is “light composed of electromagnetic radiation of a certain wavelength or several wavelengths” but for me it is not just that. It’s not just a hue that our pupils perceive, it is not just a scale of infinite hues that we perceive and make our own…but there is a whole world behind those hues that accompany us on the wonderful journey of life and, I don’t what you think about it, but for me each color corresponds to an emotion, to a well-defined memory that sends my mind back to distant landscapes, to sensations, scents and indelible memories that are part of my emotional baggage. Let’s begin our journey into colors with the BLACK colour….
What feelings does the black color give you?
When I think of something black, the first thing that comes to my mind is the color of the sea at night. I don’t know if you have ever sat on the sand in front of the immensity of the sea, when the establishments are closed and around there are only the last protagonists of a day now coming to an end. I love that strange feeling in which the struggle between the fear of the unknown unfolding before you and the security of sitting on that patch of land makes you inevitably begin to reflect.
Your thoughts are lulled by the gentle sound of the waves that continue their inexorable motion, and in front of you there is only the light of the stars so far away and the moon that seems so close…and they put before you only one question, “Who are you?”. As the Caterpillar in the book “Alice in Wonderland” asks to our favorite heroine at that moment it is only you who more give an answer to this question that is among all questions the most difficult. And then it is wonderful to start running with thoughts and memories and as you try to find meaning in everything you have done and what you have been up to that exact moment, I realize that this question I still do not know how to answer!
The blackest characters in my paintings are without a shadow of a doubt the cards…the 5, the 7 and the 2 of Spades!
When Alice finally arrives in the garden of the Queen of Hearts, she encounters these bizarre characters intent on painting with red varnish the white roses in the court rose garden, just for one of the many whims of the mad queen. They are the Spades…it is then not at all a bad idea that Lewis Carrol had that the Spades are the Gardeners of Wonderland! Secondary characters in the book, but whose story makes one reflect on the absurdity of tyranny and how unfortunately despots have the power to subjugate the masses with the most ignoble demands. And so the reflection arises, what are the tyrants of today?
The importance of black in my paintings…
As much as I love colors in all their shades, there is always a good dose of black elements within my works. My paintings are all drawn on wood panels, I prefer charcoal for drawings so I can say with absolute certainty that one of the best feelings I get when I am there giving space to my imagination is to get my hands dirty with black! When I start drawing I have in mind where I want to go, what happens in between is an instinctive thing. I don’t realize what’s happening, what music I’m listening to, whether it’s raining outside or the sun is shining. All I know is that at some point I look at the hands of the clock and I see that time has passed and I am enraptured by the scent of wood and my hands are dirty with charcoal.
In my “Fallen Houses” black also takes center stage, in a couple of cases I wanted to create a black base just to bring out the drawing, black is also that…the perfect background from which to let emotions spill out, just as the stars seem to pop out of the sea at night. But there has not always been only charcoal! Another great passion of mine is ink, which I have been using lately to personalize the prints you will find on the Shop page of the site! To detach myself, to let my work rest and then, after a few days, to go in search of it in order to read in the strokes of the nib and in the colors of the ink my most intimate life, the most hidden part of me, this is what it is for me to express myself on paper. Here ends our journey into black, I hope you enjoyed it and that it moved you as it moved me! What will be the color of the month for March? STAY CURIOUSER… 
