It’s an autobiographical piece with references to pop culture and symbolism closely related to the artist’s life, although it can resonate with anyone and make them look back on their own life’s stage. A theater stage with masks and hidden characters.
The face, the artist’s, stares at the observer and encourages them to look at the scene of her life, with a tired and detached look. Around her everything is in movement but, despite that, the show must go on.
While everything around her comes to life and is moving, the pearl decorations serve as a “support” to add elegance and stability; other than representing the jewelry and possessions given by grandmothers to nieces and daughters.
Most of the elements that fill the scene are symbols or representations of someone or something that left a permanent mark on the artist’s subconscious.
The man in the tail coat is in a very real sense exiting the stage of the artist’s life. Other than a few wrinkles and gray hairs, the old man does not have any distinguishing features, however he’s dressed elegantly and with accessories (the top hat, the silk bow tie and the diamond jewelry) that reference the song “l’uomo in frac” di D.Modugno. The man is not touching the ground; it is the representation of the artist’s grandfather who passed away, thanks to whom she discovered and nurtured her passion for Italian music.
The frog in the glass is the visual representation of the Italian saying “ingoiare il rospo” (meaning: suck it up) but at the same time it recalls the imagery of the fairy tale “the princess and the frog”. The amorous dualism between having to deal with many compromises and the fairy tale of the honeymoon period.
The dog, same as the man in the tail coat, is exiting the stage suspended in the air. It is Lola, as an homage to the Cavalier King that accompanied the artist for 8 years of her life and whose absence has left a great void.
The callas represent the artist’s parents and two grandmothers.
The Alstroemeria represents the good in friendship, the support and compassion. It symbolizes the figures that are not part of her immediate family, but are like one.
The Ichthys (or Jesus Fish) represents her spirituality. Christianity merged with the concept of trust in the universe and a faith that is almost scientific. A mix between the empirical knowledge of Christianity and a curiosity towards astronomy and sciences that study the universe.
The dark door (on the bottom, almost hidden) is depicted with two rolls of film, crossed to form a kind of ‘X’ and the word ‘Memorie’, to suggest that most of her memories, whether good or bad, end up forgotten there. The difficult memories to get access to, the ones that create little daily problems.
