Luca Cantarelli

Art and expression: Luca Cantarelli

This month, for Art and expression section a special guest, a great artist that I've discovered few months ago. His works are so beautiful that it was love at first sight! His style and his special vision of the famle figure are so characteristic and outside of canons of reference that I couldn't not to share them with all of you. His name is Luca Cantarelli, 30 years old, born and grow in the amazing island of Sardinia.

Lawyer by profession, artis for vocation, he has always cultived the love for art, painting landscapes and floral themes, naif style, at first, then focusing on the face of characters actually exsist that capture his attention. Driven by a higly motivation he decides to quit a safe career, in same ways, and dedicate himself to his true passion: fashion. So, he moves to Milan where he completes the studies in fashion design, proposing himself as fashion illustrator and emerging designer.

Looking to gain experience in the field of fashion, at the same time <<I try to bring order to many ideas and then dedicate to my own project. I'm not just talking about illustrations but carry my sketches and my prints in fabrics: silk maxy neon jumpsuits, silk printed scarves... nice oversize jeans and chewing gum on the side of the mouth for my "paninara" (who sells bread) housewife!>>.

To the question about what fashion means to him and the way he can combine it with art he said: <<Today, fashion is a way to present ourselves in a certain way and sell ourselves as what we like at the moment, that's really hard, but at least we have fun playing  roles that don't even belong to us. Art removes, in my opinion, that boring taste that fashion can take in its most commercial side>>.

Convinced that <<the visual impact is important and it doesn't  have to leave indifferent>>, talking about himself he said to be <<a little messy naive>>. A particular artsist of a personality sui generis. To the question about how he takes his inspiration he said: <<Oh my God, what awkward question,  I don't know. Currently I love porcelain...  porcelain sundries (...). I can't really tell you the reason of my "love". They're periodic processes that trigger unwittingly, I couldn't tell which process they follow... Definitely I hate having to provoke your own healty inspiration, because it can't be induced  but it has simply occur freely>>.

Inspired by the artworks of Guido Crepax, creator of famous characters like Valentina (emblematic figure of the 60's artistic spirit in Italy, characterized by a psychedelic and dreaming plot, with a strong erotic charge), about the meaning of art and his relationship with it he answered: <<The word "art" doesn't generate any emotional involvement in me, it's just pure aesthetics. Then the other people are free to see and looking for the hidden meanings in it, God forbid, but I prefer to be surreal in other moments>>.

Fascinated by his artistic personality, I asked him a motto or a quote to describe himself: <<If you accept style advices you don't understand anything about it, you have always defend your cause>>. To everyone who want to pursue the carrer of illustrator he wishes <<a life full of colors!>>.

With a strong personality, he's one of those subjects that you just can love or hate. Well, of course I'm one of those people who love him! I'm so happy of giving him a space in my blog and I hope you like it. If you enjoyed his works as much as I did, don't forget to visit his facebook page, Luca Cantarelli paintings, or find him on twitter.

I'll see you next time, always with Art and expression, always on Ladyfairy's closet!