ALADD-IN-SPACE Painting

Throughout his life, self taught, Italian born emerging portrait artist Alex Di Silvestro, has experimented and worked across a wide spectrum of visual arts, including cut out paper collages, ink sketched, digital illustration, fashion illustration, photography & interior design. In only a few years, Alex Di Silvestro's original ICONIC PORTRAITS have become art collectibles and they keep attracting buyers & collectors worldwide. The artist regularly undertake portrait commissions from private and corporate clients alike and offers a second to none five star personal customer service. ARTIST STATEMENT As a self-trained visual & portrait artist, I endeavour to create unique original artworks which purely reflects my own natural inspiration and individuality, untouched by academic rules or standards, while bridging the gap between the geometric rational harmony of design and the emotional chaos of art. My ICONIC PORTRAITS collection is the result of an abstract, minimal and hypo-realistic interpretation of real and fictional human and animal characters alike, aimed to capture the essence, emotions and unique stories of the subjects in a single, bold frame. Each portrait tells a unique story, and connects the artist, the subject and the viewer in a deep emotional way. My main inspiration comes from design, pop art, music & fashion icons, graffiti & street art, films and photography of my favourite decades: the Swinging Sixties, the Cool Seventies, the Electric Eighties and the Hip Hop Nineties. Another great inspiration which is also part of my personal story is the master of surrealism Salvador Dali' and his incredible eccentric multifaceted genius, who has literally become my artistic muse. My working process is meticulously studied and masterfully crafted. After an initial research on the subject, I sketch each piece directly on canvas, first on pencil, then with acrylic paint. My completely untextured brush strokes are applied with ultra thin brushes in different layers and mainly in flat blocks. I often distress the top layers to create shades or textures & I can also use spray cans, although marginally. Colour has a key role in my work, my bold vibrant combinations are key to my hand signature. I use high grade acrylic and matt gouache or acrylic paint in a mainly synthetic colour palette which includes neons & metallics.