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Caradonna on
Caradonna (2004)
I have always wanted to talk to
people about people. My work acts as a metaphorical mirror, a painting
where you can see revealed, or discover, a part of yourself. Sometimes it can be
beautiful, sometimes ugly or even painful - all the varied facets of
ourselves. Since 1990 my work has matured and ripened - whereas I previously
worked with dark or earthy colour tones, I now choose to work with vivid colours
while endeavouring ever more to present the 'essence'. During the actual 'painting' a
moment arises where the artist no longer decides but simply does as he
is.
Ik heb altijd tot nu aan toe
met mensen over mensen willen vertellen. Mijn kunstuiting funktioneert hierin
als een metaforische spiegel - een schilderij waar je als mens een deel van
jezelf in kunt tegenkomen, zien of ontdekken. De ene keer kan dat mooi
zijn, de volgende keer misschien lelijk of misschien wel pijnlijk - alle
aspekten die we in ons dragen. Mijn werk is sinds 1990 vooral gerijpt en
gegroeid - waar ik voorheen vooral werkte met donkere of aarde tinten gebruik ik
nu meer heldere kleuren en probeer ik nog meer de essentie neer te zetten.
Tijdens het schilderen komt er een moment waarop je als kunstenaar niet meer
beslist maar doet wat je bent.
Lella Antinozzi on
Caradonna (1993)
It is not easy to talk about the the
work of Roberto Caradonna. His is a labour which rejects definitions by which it can be
described, but this remains insufficient; it can be appreciated from a technical
point of view, but still something is missing; it can be linked with other
schools or traditions, yet goes beyond them. Caradonna displays a striking
spiritual and artistic affinity with the so-called 'primitive' cultures (primitive,
that is only according to the standards of a society, our western society, in
which money is given more prominence over more human criteria). In a word, it is
work we must feel rather than merely observe - as we should do with
every wort of art - and when we feel it we are speechless: there are no words to
convey - the emotions are released when a painting is touching our roots. Nobody
can tell us who we are and where we came from.
Caradonna is a painter and he uses
his medium to explore with us the mystery of mankind. He transforms it into a
story told in lines and colours. A harmony where the poetry of signs plays with
the polychromy of surfaces, be they flat or of an astonishing deepness. he
performs his art with both skill and humility. Because of his humility he is
constantly experimenting, leaving a door open for new materials and new
techniques, as he says: "the problem of research will never end, because
you never stop, you go further, even if you know you are going towards new
discomforts". He is therefore a painter who evolves through the
evolution of his technique. He does not exclude any means or material. He uses
everything in search of the result he is looking for: "the research goes
on, pieces of rusted iron welded together, coal fragments, sealing wax, acrylic
colours, charcoal, oil painting, ecoline, asphalt, tar, I've used them all to
achieve my artistic goal". The evolution of Caradonna goes beyond
painting. He is totally involved as a human being. He constantly challenges
his convictions about himself and his surrounding reality. That is how he can
reach the depth and maturity which are the starting points for his new projects.
Caradonna is an inexhaustible
painter, because painting is his way of growing, and creation is a daily
activity yet always new. It is like opening a box of delights: discoveries that
never end; as soon as we focus on one of them, there is another coming out to
catch our attention. Relentless experimentation is the box of delights of
Roberto Caradonna, and also his great virtue. His commitment to finding the
right tone, the right brightness, the right density of colour,, can only match
his passion for the actual making of the mark. The most recent result of this
incessant activity are the 'paintings in rust'. The rusty colour has been
obtained by scraping nails rusted in water. The vivacity of the colour is hard
to describe: neither orange nor terra de siena, but 'simply rust'! Some of the
works speak for themselves, like La Tigre (The tiger) or L'essenza
(The essence), or the 'senza titolo' (without title), made of three stone
tables standing on two wooden legs of a deckchair. In any exhibition Caradonna
presents a new collection, always different from the one before, because
exposing the results of the new researches is an opportunity to observe and
realize where his energy is leading him. The works presented in the Langenberg
Gallery in Amsterdam, the city where he's lived and worked for the last 15 years,
are the product of his last year of activity. It is a series of works in various
dimensions including a group of beautiful 'minute' paintings. There are works on
paper, stone and rush-canvas, like 'Molumba', whch Caradonna describes as
the potential manifesto of his art. There are also some provocative and
misleading works, like 'Per cena una bella favola' (For dinner a nice
fairytale), with its deliberately flat colours, deprived of any depth, its hard
marks and rigid forms. Is it an accusation? On the other hand, 'Cane di razza'
(Pedigree dog) and 'Le tre guide' (The three guides) envelope us in
colours of a vividness that suggest irressistible depth.
Throughout Cardonna's most recent
works we find a 'black mark' , sometimes in abstract form, sometimes in the
shape of long hands, or dancing figures. It is a powerful element, which is
clearly linked to the 'elementary graphics' of the culture of the Pygmies.
There is in fact a spiritual and artistic relation between Caradonna and the
culture of the forest of Zaire, in central Africa, to whom is dedicated the work
'Montagne e coccodrilli' ( Mountains and crocodiles). The black marks
were already part of Caradonna's artistic language long before he encountered the
culture of the Pygmies and between 1990 -1991 he travelled to Africa to actually
meet them. Ever since, he has been trying to publish a book he wrote about his
experiences, in order to raise funds to fight the disease which is now
threatening the Pygmies with extinction.
The work 'Non vanno pił di mod' (They
are not trendy anymore) is dedicated to the western tendency to consider the 'primitive'
cultures as a fashion-item, something to exploit with exhibitions and publications,
only then to be thrown away as soon as it is no longer trendy. The profound and
often moving message that these cultures are presenting to us is utterly ignored.
Western society is eagerly looking for new and 'original' artistic trends,
it is a huge machine devouring everything in the attempt to overcome the
feeling of emptiness which is produced at the same time. So what? Nothing at all,
Per cena una bella favola.
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