Interview
Cecilia Maran
Cecilia Maran was born in Padua, Italy in 1997. She has a First Level Diploma in etching techniques - graphic art, and a Master’s in graphic art and design. She also has excellent knowledge of Suite Adobe (Photoshop, Illustrator, and Indesign).
During her artistic career she approaches an abstract style, using both traditional and experimental etching techniques, keeping elements that recall the natural sphere as fundamental themes of her research. Her interest in the nature of the abyss is expressed in her artworks through the reinterpretation and reconstruction of the seabed, trying to tell and make visible the hidden beauties of the sea depths.
Cecilia has taken part in various exhibitions in Italy, and abroad in Portugal and Croatia.
Cecilia worked for Biennale Foundation during the 17th International Architecture Exhibition, and then for the studio of architecture Doxiadis, carrying out the maintenance works of the installation on display for at La Biennale.
She is a member of the MovingLab Venice Cultural Association, and works as a graphic designer volunteer both for the graphic projects and events communication. In 2019, Cecilia designed the watermark for Marciana National Library in Venice, and she took part in an educational and research project proposed by Peggy Guggenheim Collection. Since 2020, she has worked as a scholarship tutor for the graphic arts course at the Academy of Fine Arts of Venice, and in 2022 as the graphic design teacher at G. Valle High school in Padua.
Cecilia carries out her artistic activities in her atelier in Padua, and as a print maker, she is a member of the International People of Print community. Her engravings are part of public and private collections.
What is your background and how did you start your journey?
“I find that art is a very important form of communication, and that it manages to convey a deep message to anyone. After discovering the world of printmaking, I tried different print techniques such as intaglio, silkscreen-printing, lithography and xylography. I found it all so amazing because I would discover something new every day.
The language of engraving, thanks to all the steps it entails—from engraving the matrix to printing on paper—leads the artist on a continuous process of introspection. The engraving gesture requires power and strength, and these express themselves by leaving incisions on the matrix. You will find all of the artist’s states of mind and emotions in these incisions.”
What inspires you most?
“My inspiration comes from so many sources: my background, travel, buildings, nature, culture, color, and great artists of the past like Picasso, Frida Kahlo, Mattie, and many others.
Ultimately, looking at a blank canvas and knowing that I can create whatever I like is the best inspiration.”
“With my artworks, I aim to lead the observer through the seabed’s mysteries and, moreover, to let them get lost inside the engraved details.
I try to make it a process of introspection, where people can find and know their own feelings and emotions.”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“My artistic research is based on the reinterpretation of the seabed. Through my prints and paintings, I try to tell what is hidden in the abyss. I consult topographic maps, which describe the seabed’s bathymetries from a scientific point of view. I try to make a connection between the scientific and artistic language in order to give a new representation of the seas. I think it’s important to pay more attention and respect to nature. Humans often consider themselves the most important being in the world, forgetting all the other life forms that inhabit it.
My artworks try to shift the focus from human to nature, especially seas, oceans, and natural entities. That’s because we know very little of what hides in the immense expanses of water that cover the world. In fact, only 10 square km of seabed worldwide has been explored and mapped.”
How would you describe your work?
“My artistic process is characterized by an experimental approach, trying to use new experimental techniques, and connect different artistic languages. I’d describe my artworks as the place where tradition and innovation can interact in order to create something new and different.”
Which artists influence you most?
“I feel very close to the artistic philosophy and practice of Jean Dubuffet. This is about the necessity to give nature the opportunity to express itself by leaving its traces on canvas or matrices, giving space to the random component.
Other artists who influence me are Guido Strazza, and Walter Valentini, Italian print-makers who tried to theorize the precious aesthetic and psychological role of engraving in the art world. Thanks to Valentini, I discovered how to design an engraving using shaped plates, while Strazza’s thoughts and theories helped me understand and know the engraved sign’s power.”
What is your creative process like?
“My engraving process is based on connecting different techniques and artistic languages in order to tell the story of the seas. Using graphic design programs such as Adobe Illustrator, I design a stencil which I use to shape the zinc plate. Every matrix obtained represents the reinterpretation of a specific bathymetry, useful to recreate a selected area of the seabed. Then I use both traditional and experimental etching techniques, getting clear and sharp signs with effervescent effects.
One of the techniques that characterize my artworks involves the reaction between nitric acid and sodium bicarbonate. They produce an uncontrolled effervescence on the zinc plate, leaving the engraved trace of a precise moment on the matrix . Finally, I print zinc plates in an overlapping fashion using different colors, which is useful for describing the depth of the sea. I practice the same experimental approach creating my paintings, which aim to share about underwater nature. Bright color rendition is the most important phase of the artwork. In fact, I create the alcohol colors myself in order to give the expected result. I paint on glossy paper, use china and ecoline inks, and draw signs which reflect the seabed’s flora.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“I’ve always considered the role of the artist in the society to be very important because, thanks to their most sensitive sight, they are able to give people new perspectives on the themes they work on. Furthermore, the language of art, with music as one example, is universal. Everyone can understand and find something in a work of art.
Maybe people would prefer expressionist art pieces instead of symbolic ones, but art is always able to make one feel something. Artists must share the beauty in our world, even if they work on complicated or serious topics, in order to make people aware of all aspects of the world, positive or negative.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“I recently visited ‘Salvador Dali. The exhibition’ in Torin, Italy, and ‘L’occhio in gioco’ in Padua, Italy. The first one tells about the lithography and etching practice of the artist, also showing sculptures. I found it interesting observing prints without any painting made by the artist. Usually, printmaking is accompanied by painted artworks, but this time the prints were placed at the centre of attention.
The second one is an exhibition that aims to discover optical art, showing artists like Antonio Biasi, Toni Costa and Marina Apollonio, who in the 60s, started creating artworks based on optics and mathematical principles.
One last exhibition that I would like to share is ‘Lagunare’ in Venice, Italy. This was my solo exhibition where I showed some of my artworks, both prints and paintings.
Other exhibitions include:
2022 - Lagunare in Venice.
2021 - The Premio Ilaria Ciardi 2021 at the Academy of Fine Arts in Ravenna, participating at the exhibition held for the award ceremony.
- Etchings paintings during the personal exhibitions Effervescentia in Rome.
- Mare Superum in Venice.
- Marosee in Milan.
2020 - Won second place at the Premio Rotary Arte e Cultura.
2019 - I won the third prize in the Engravings section during the Art Expression exhibition, Novara.
- Charity auction organized by AVAPO Venice in collaboration with Christie’s and the charity auction Art’s Angels organized by the DOMNA and Jeos associations, aimed at supporting women victims of discrimination and violence.”
