Ciaccia Levi

Open map

Via Gioacchino Rossini 3,
20122 Milan

Mon CLOSED
Tue-Fri 12 noon-7 p.m.
Sat 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
Sun 2-7 p.m. (Nov. 24 only)

ARTISTS:
Leonardo Devito
Domenico Gnoli (Collezione Ramo)

---

Leonardo Devito answers questions from
Irina Zucca Alessandrelli, curator of the Collezione Ramo.

Give a definition of what drawing is for you.
I think of drawing as a sign, an elementary gesture of tracing or engraving something on a surface. Drawing for me is an ancient and versatile practice that has always been linked to design but also capable of making itself autonomous through its own qualities. I love drawing when I think of Tintin, Charlie Brown, Pimpa or Picasso, when, with very simple strokes, one is able to delineate a particular setting and atmosphere and at the same time completely distant from objective reality. In this sense I like to think of drawing as a practice that is distinguished by its lightness, more inclined toward description and illustration. Along these lines, I like to use drawing to create images that are different from those I make in painting, often much more narrative and loaded with detail.

What creative techniques and processes do you use when working on paper?
I started thinking about drawing as an independent practice through etching, especially etching and aquatinting or, more generally, all metal plate etching techniques. As I delved deeper into these techniques, I appreciated the mark of the tip on the plate, which, unlike a pencil drawing, leaves a dry mark, a real scratch whose depth and intensity can be adjusted almost scientifically through acid biting. The result, in my opinion, is magical and almost irreproducible with any other direct drawing technique. For this reason, even when drawing directly on paper, I seek out working techniques reminiscent of etching, such as silver pointing or using pencils with a very hard lead capable of leaving dry and precise marks.

Why did you choose this work from the Collezione Ramo?
I was interested in having a direct confrontation with an artist whom I greatly appreciate and whose graphic work has always been strongly linked to the world of illustration.
Among all the drawings in the collection, Gnoli's work is the one that struck me the most and in which I personally found a closeness with my own work, both from a technical point of view (we both use a lot of hatching for chiaroscuro) but above all because of the illustrative and narrative character of the image, not dissimilar to the approach that I often use as well, especially in my graphic production.

What value does dialogue with modern drawing have for you?
I think it is very stimulating and necessary for a contemporary artist to be able to establish a dialogue and direct confrontation with an artist from a recent past that he or she appreciates. It certainly means giving a new contemporary vitality to a work from the past, confirming and consolidating a passage of witnesses.
For me it is very valuable to be able to dialogue with a work by Gnoli, whose work I have always appreciated and who, over time, has left a 'definite influence on my painting.