LOntani

This work originated from the desire to create a portrait that would not simply represent a face, but would instead reflect on the performative practice of Luigi Ontani.
In the drawing, I constructed a frontal face reduced to an extremely essential form, almost to the point of becoming an iconic presence. In place of the ears, I inserted two small figures of the artist depicted while performing one of his characteristic performative gestures. In this way, the entire figure becomes part of the anatomy of the portrait, as if the artist’s body were inhabiting his own face.
This substitution creates a kind of visual short circuit: the portrait does not simply represent Ontani, but incorporates the performative dimension that runs through his entire artistic practice. The lateral figures seem both to emerge from the face and to support it, transforming the portrait into a small theatrical space where the artist’s body becomes part of the structure of the image.
The drawing was executed with an essential and immediate line, almost calligraphic, in order to keep the structural idea of the work at the center. It was later digitized and printed on Hahnemühle fine art paper with a delicate passe-partout that enhances its graphic and suspended quality.
Technique: mixed media
Edition: 5 prints + original
Support: variable support