Interview
Antonella Baccigalupi
Antonella, an Italian born creative, is a graduate in the history of art.
Although a career in art is not her full time pursuit, she still finds the act of creating to be a healing, positive outlet for her to bright light to her inner inspirations.
What she has in abundance is creativity. The process of having an idea and trying to realize it is what keeps her alive, and what seems to draw her path in life.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“Since I was a little child, I liked to draw. When I saw cartoons or illustrated books, I felt like I wanted to do the same great work. I later found out that it wasn’t so simple after all. Fortunately, I never gave up trying as I found art so inspirational.
As a child, I was a good gymnast, so I spent a large portion of time in the gym. I also had to study, and then later started working, so drawing and painting became just a hobby to enjoy during my free time. I tried tempera colors, watercolors, and pastel, but what fascinated me was colors.
The first time I tried oil painting was because my best friend’s father occasionally painted with oil, and the brilliance and thickness of the oil colors was irresistible. In fact, it is still my favorite technique. I’d also like to improve on my black-and-white pencil drawing style, which is my second favorite technique.”
What inspires you most?
“Nature, landscape, and historical places have been a great source of inspiration for me. For many years, I found it very inspiring to focus on some great artist from the past, trying to learn their technique, feelings, point of view, reason, and all that formed their masterpieces.
At university I studied History of Art, so I had a large amount of inspirational subjects.
Today, the internet has made it so easy to be inspired by the skills of the many little-known artists on social media. I see masterpieces in manga, anime, illustrated books, and in the illustrations of many board games. So many people create really great art, and this makes me feel inspired.”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“The themes I enjoy most are impressionist and nature. I’m vegan and I really love animals and my pets, which is why it’s so natural for me to mix art and pets in my mind. I try to let them be immortal in their beauty while capturing the beautiful moment.
The underlying message is simple. Most people have a pet that they have loved and wanted the best for. They’ve probably wanted it to live forever. So they can understand the process of wanting to celebrate them as a piece of art. We should extend this process to all nature, not only for the pet we know and love. It would be complicated, but we should try to enshrine the nature on our planet.”
“I find it so enjoyable trying to match a famous painting to each of my pets! I know that it might not be the most original idea, and I know that those who don’t know the animal and its character may probably not appreciate the irony of the choice, but I still have so much fun doing it.”
How would you describe your work?
“My work is me struggling for some free time to realize my inspirations.
I like to be very quiet and calm while I paint, draw, or write. Sometimes I create as a means of calming down, but I mostly create because it makes me happy doing something that I love.
I still have to find my very own style and theme; a way for the viewer to recognize ‘my hand’ in my paintings. Until now, I’ve made many canvases from copying famous paintings and random inspirations. I’ve also created a collection of my pets inside art masterpieces, which is my first collection and I’m very proud of it. Lastly, I’ve done some illustrations for a game role book.
As I look for my unique style, I continue to experiment with many ways of expressing different things, especially emotions and psychological feelings. But I also want to transmit positive and relaxing feelings. All in all, I’m at the beginning of the art path, and have a lot of work to do.”
Which artists influence you most?
“Van Gogh was my first favorite artist. Then came Monet, Japan prints, illustrated fairy tale books, and many, many artists on social media, like the great Annie Steg and Johan Potma.”
What is your creative process like?
“Most of the time it comes out like, ‘Wow, I just had a nice idea.’ That often happens to me when looking for a way out of something bad, so bad things are good for inspiration. I remember while growing up, I found the process of creating a beautiful dance piece similar to the process of trying to express something through painting, music, and all the different forms of art. The art path is the same; only the material is different.
Traveling, walking around, seeing something new, and even going shopping are very good activities that can begin the creative process.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“Now more than ever, people are seeking advice from books, TV, and art. Many people’s lives nowadays are inspired by their idols: singers, dancers, actors, writers, and so on.
We seem to have lost our way, and we need to find our path again. Art can help us do this as it goes straight to our heart, mind, and soul, helping us feel what someone else might have felt.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“ I was awarded the Michelangelo prize in Tuscany, Seravezza in 2017.”
Instagram: @kb_antoart
