“From today, painting is dead!” This exclamation, attributed to French artist Paul Delaroche upon seeing a daguerreotype circa 1840, speaks to the shock of the new. During the years since, however, photography and painting have become inseparable. Cristina Spagnolo, a Verona-based image-maker with a background in cultural heritage, is inspired by art from the 1500s and 1600s. Bollongier, Botticelli, Caravaggio and da Vinci are key names; she takes cues from their mastery of light, detail and form. The result is portraiture that echoes oil painting. Spagnolo is particularly interested in depicting women; her subjects are closely framed and bathed in chiaroscuro-esque shadows. Elsewhere, she makes delicate nature pictures – waterlilies blooming, berries clinging to branches, trees threading through the landscape. Her goal is to give editorial imagery “an artistic, almost pictorial touch,” composing scenes that resonate in a hyper-visual world. cristinaspagnolo.com | @cristinaspagnolo.ph
Image Credits:
All images courtesy of Cristina Spagnolo.
