The Only Beast I've Ever Known Painting

Multidisciplinary Gianluca DeMichele born in Italy 1980, raised between Rome and Monopoli (IT) resident in the UK since 2009. His childhood is characterised by the frequent moving between the ancient capital, hometown of his father and the naturalistic and calming scenery of his mother's hometown in coastal Puglia. He paints his first work, an abstract self-portrait titled [And Diurnal Nights' 1998] inspired by a poem written that same year at age 17 Philosophical subjects such as existentialism moved him to further explore themes like duality, the wandering mind, universal consciousness, the influence of the Moon, the Sun and the planets in our solar system on all life on Earth with particular focus on the human condition With Poetry and Music being his former crafts of choice, DeMí complements songwriting with painting and vice-versa In his portraiture, he taps into the collective sub-conscious often referencing Philosophy and Psychoanalysis from Jung's personality archetypes rather than depicting the individual's characteristics per se Strong also is the referencing in world's folklore, myth and esoterica set in a contemporary context. In his ongoing quest to study the relations and dynamics connecting the human psyche and the ego to the documented history of mankind and as this gets backdated further by brave historians, he finds comfort in creating exaggerated dramatisations of his characters, exercising narratives that are playful and contain elements of tragicomedy Since his relocation to the UK the work becomes increasingly more sculptural, breaking through the constraints of bi-dimensional canvas surface. It now incorporates crystals, fabrics, glass, metals and the use of projectors and sound (A/V). The aim is to create bridges between realms, using all mediums, chasing the spectrum beyond the constraints of seasonal trends and the mundane, inviting the audience to channel those extra-dimensional states with multi-sensorial, often collaborative, installations