gpaolo.art

Tag: Party

  • The suspended quiet of Valletta

    In the scorching heart of August, Valletta presents itself as a city frozen in time, carved in golden stone that challenges the gaze and heats the air. A few steps echo through its streets emptied by the sun, where the eye seeks refuge in the shade of a balcony, behind the corner of a door.

    The facades, sand and honey colored, shine with bright light, but they are enlivened by the “gallariji” – wooden balconies painted in bold shades, emerald green and cobalt blue – that look out like silent observers above the pavement.

    Above our heads, strings stretched between the houses hold colored paper lanterns, light as cheerful thoughts, ready for the celebration of the Assumption. Red, yellow, indigo and emerald, they dance in the breeze of the nearby sea, between shadow and sun, waiting for the evening when the city will wake up in a bright explosion of faith and joy.

    In this suspended moment, my painting captures the warm breath of the city and its hidden heart, which beats slowly, waiting for the party.

    TITLE:   

    The suspended quiet of Valletta

    SUPPORT:

    Cotton canvas on frame

    SIZE:

    65 x 80

    TECHNIQUE:

    Oil on canvas

    DATE:

    June 2025

    SERIAL N.:

    20250602

    NOTES:

    Subject taken from one of my photos and made entirely with a spatula

  • The Indian’s Holi Festival

    The Holi Festival of Colors in India is a celebration of the victory of good over evil, with the destruction of the demon Holika. It is celebrated every year on the day after the full moon of the Hindu month of Phalguna, which corresponds to the beginning of March. People celebrate the beginning of spring and other events of the Hindu religion; they parade through the streets sprinkling colored powders on everyone, dancing and singing.

    I saw this photo awarded by Corriere della Sera in the spring of 2022. It was too bright to pass by without looking at it. I immediately filed it in my “photos to draw” folder and, one day, after finishing the tulips and still having many colors left on the palette, I decided to experiment using the spatula.

    At Atelier Crespi I had watched Maestro Fontanini teach this technique to a colleague, Vittorio Ragazzini, and, discreetly, I had understood that the color was mixed a lot on the palette and little on the canvas.

    Thus, and unexpectedly, this painting was born, an expression of the joy and happiness of the subject, who lets himself be shaped and seems to enjoy being modeled by the hands of his friends.

    The shot is by photojournalist Channi Anand (AP)

    TITLE:   

    The Indian’s Holi Festival

    SUPPORT:

    Cotton canvas on frame

    SIZE:

    50 x 70 cm

    TECHNIQUE:

    Oil on canvas

    DATE:

    March 2022

    SERIAL N.:

    20220302

    NOTES:

    Made entirely with a spatula

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