Art Interview: Lucamaleonte
Lucamaleonte’s enormous wall pieces mercilessly jump out and grab you by the eye and his smaller pieces are of such fine detail that my fingers hurt just by looking at them! With my second language being Italian and his second language being English, communicating was for us like being two kids in the back of a truck on a bumpy road – both painful and fun.
Name: Lucamaleonte
Age: 25 years
Hometown: Rome, Italy
Specialty: Stencil Art
Homepage: www.myspace.com/lucamaleonte
Lucamaleonte’s enormous wall pieces mercilessly jump out and grab you by the eye and his smaller pieces are of such fine detail that my fingers hurt just by looking at them! With my second language being Italian and his second language being English, communicating was for us like being two kids in the back of a truck on a bumpy road – both painful and fun. I strongly recommend you go check out his work. Without further ado, I present; Lucamaleonte!
*Lights dim and Zeezee exits stage left*
Q: Did you go to art school?
A: No, I did everything myself, I first studied at scientific college, and then I
graduated in painting and fine art restoration this year.
Q: Are friends and family important to you?
A: Yes. I always show my work to my friends and my family before exposing them
to the public.
Q: When did you start making stencils?
A: I started making stencils in 2000 – that is, eight years ago.
Q: why did you make your first stencil?
A: To create stickers that would last longer than stickers done with only markers. Stencils gave me clean looking stickers which had great impact when seen on the street.
Q: Why do you stencil now?
A: Because stenciling is one of the most enjoyable and satisfying things for me to do.
Q: Who or what is the greatest influence on your art?
A: “old school” fine art, especially the great European painters of 14, 15 and 16 hundreds.
I always keep an eye on the hyper-realistic artists.
Q: Are you involved in any sports/hobbies/interests? Which?
A: My interests are in studying art, reading (a lot of!) books and graphic novels, drawing, trekking, climbing, and of course cutting stencils – did I say this before?
Q: What would you most like to do before it’s too late?
A: I do everything too late! I’d like to travel and being inspired by different realities. All of my last stencils were cut of pictures taken in other countries.
Q: If I was to meet you in person, what one word would describe you?
A: ‘Serious’, I think.
Q: What is your favorite format to stencil (large/small/canvas/street) and why?
A: My favorite format changes with the moment – sometimes I prefer little stencils with lots of small details, while at other times I prefer large stencils with lots of large and small details. I don’t like to paint directly on the streets – I prefer to make posters or stickers, it’s much more fun for me.
Q: What do you hope to achieve with your stenciling career?
A: I don’t hope anything. I’d like to start living with my art, and to never get bored with this technique,
To always improve my skills.
Q: Do you make your living only by your art?
A: This is the way that I’m living at the moment, yet since I am still living at home, everything is still easy for me. I’d like to live only by my art, without the help of my family.
Q: What do you do to help make the hard work of stenciling easier for you?
A: When I cut stencils I always think about the moment when I’ll take off the last layer of stencil that I have just painted – that’s always the best moment for me; the moment when you realize what you have done.
Q: Is there anything else you want to say?
A: Thanks for giving me the opportunity to talk about myself to the world.
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Words by: ZeeZee
