HOW DID YOU APPROACH STREET ART AND GRAFFITI?
I’ve always drawn since I was a child. Although my path took me quite far from this passion, fortunately, it all came out in the end.
I grew up in a small town in the south of Italy and I can’t deny that drawing was a kind of escape from reality for me. Then, at the age of 18, I moved to a bigger city to study at university and there I found a much more alive artistic scene. I thought it would have been a great idea to get out of my comfort zone, so I started creating my first stencils on streets and then, little by little, I got to what I’m doing today. I don’t think I’ve ever stopped since that moment.
WHAT IS YOUR DEFINITION OF STREET ART?
I don’t have a proper definition, and I’m not even sure that what I’m doing fits the standard definition, but for me, it’s overall a form of art that keeps at the centre spontaneity and freedom.
STREET ARTISTS – IN PARTICULAR GRAFFITI - ARE SOMETIMES STILL CONSIDERED TO HAVE A SORT OF ANARCHICAL MATRIX, WHEREAS YOU TALK ABOUT FUNCTION IN THIS SOCIETY, SO SOCIETY IS IMPORTANT TO YOU? HOW AND WHY?
There’s huge confusion and also misunderstanding between all these different forms of expression. In terms of what I’ve done in the last 10 years, I think I would fit more into the Muralism movement, which is different from the graffiti movement and street art.
I’ve decided to work in public, and it was impossible for me not to deal with themes that belong to society. In this way, I have the chance to bring to evidence the lacks and needs of our world, and at the same time, to express my point of view.
AUTONOMY AND FREEDOM, WHAT DO THEY MEAN TO YOU?
Crucial concepts for every single individual on planet Earth. In my work, they’re the keys to everything.
HIS NOSTALGIC AND CANDID PROTAGONISTS, IMMERSED IN CLUSTERS OF MICRO-BUILDINGS, ASSUME AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN HIS ARTISTIC POETICS
Milloland is the environment in which my characters live. It’s a world made by a never-ending repetition of buildings, streets, airplanes, billboards, and antennas, and it represents how, nowadays, society is changing its habitat. In this new habitat, my characters, a bit clumsy and out of scale, are always doing something.
By creating Milloland I want to emphasize how much we’ve built spaces where humans feel out of place, and at the same time, with my characters, I want to bring back the human side, that sense of purity that most of us have forgotten along the way.
WHEN HE PORTRAYS THEM, THROUGH AN ESSENTIAL STROKE, EVERYTHING SEEMS TO BE SHAPED BY IMAGINATION, BY THE DESIRE TO EXPERIENCE THE CITY AS A GAME BETWEEN CHILDREN
My artworks, especially my characters, are open to different interpretations. For example, some see children in them, some aliens; for me, they represent the best part of ourselves, that part that should not forget to wonder. All my compositions are driven by my imagination, but the elements that I have chosen to use are real, so this creates a kind of instant connection to them. Even if they look surreal, sometimes it’s easy to get engaged with them.
WHAT SHOULD AN ARTIST DARE?
Wherever " to dare" could take you, it’s a risk that sometimes must be taken.
AT WHAT POINT IN YOUR CAREER DO YOU FEEL?
I'm very satisfied with my path: I've had the privilege of working almost all over the world and on really important projects. I hope to continue to improve myself.
ARE THE SUBJECTS AND THEIR ACTIONS INSPIRED BY THE PLACE WHERE THE INTERVENTION TAKES PLACE? IF SO, HOW DO YOU CHOOSE THE SPACE IN WHICH TO INTERVENE? 'COMMISSION OR CHOICE?
I am usually invited to take part in festivals dedicated to this type of art. Once I have looked at all the possible walls and chosen the one I will draw on, I try to gather as much information as possible about the area where I will be working; ideally, I would be able to carry out an inspection each time, but working so far from home, is rarely possible. For this reason, before setting off on a journey, I spend lots of time trying to find out news about that specific place, its history, its events, and even its customs.
I dedicate myself to this research because I want my artwork, once completed, to be in some way part of the urban fabric, and for the people who live near them to feel that the work made was made for them.
WHAT MESSAGE DO YOU WANT TO CONVEY?
For me, each work is unique and carries a different message, but I always try to be positive, even if sometimes I also highlight what is wrong.
Just consider that 99% of the time I design blind facades that are several storeys high, accessible, and visible, but have become invisible in everyday urban life. So many times I have been told by people who live near my works that they had never paid attention to that particular wall before I worked on it. This makes people think about how we have somehow become accustomed to the ugly and how, over the last 70 years, building speculation has not taken the inhabitant into account.
That's why I spoke of "spotlights”; with my works, I can often show things that have always been there, but in a different way.
by RA/RC
for Dare Clan
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