Matteo Ricciardi
(Added Writing) * Updated 9/7/2024
Ideas from the Summer:
Idea #1: I'm Just Carapace with a Face
This is an idea that is being expanded upon from last semester. I already started this piece to get a head start on projects for the semester.
The theme/design philosophy of this piece is to personify the feeling of being a wallflower at social events. Similar to a lot of other people, I grew up struggling to socially insert myself into groups and events. So I spent most of my time on the wall observing every one else. However it never felt like being a "wall flower" like some other romanticized stories. It felt more like being a bug just minding my own business watching every one else. I grew comfortable with my little spot on the wall. Like a spider making a home. Eventually I grew up and matured like every one else but these feeling can still appear and every so often find my self back on the wall. So want this piece to physically manifests those feeling I had as a angsty teen, the ones that still bubble up more often then I would like. (Note I'm not totally committed to this theme, almost feels to corny. Still brainstorming other ideas)
Possibly have wings extended out, made from paper?
Display: I imagined it would be fun to force a gallery to set him up on a corner. For him to be set up in a unconventional spot off in/around a corner. taking viewers by surprise. This can play into the insect theme as bugs are always hiding in the corners of your room and waiting to catch you off guard.
Also I wanna explore ideas of posing his two free hands. Maybe extending a gift or holding something interesting.
Also Also... If Ashley would let me, I would love to possibly make three of them in different poses on the wall... It may be too ambitious.
Idea #2: To be or not to be, a Weevil
The bug in the top left is an Acorn Weevil and I think it is one of the interesting and cutest things to exist on this planet. The body shape and imbedded head is oddly beautiful and interesting to look at. I don't have clear idea for a theme for this piece yet.
Idea #3: The Angler fish from Nemo's Nightmares
This piece takes direct inspiration from deep sea Angler fish. This pieces theme is tied to the insecurity and complicated feeling of making friends with imposter syndrome.
Idea #4: Mind Blowing Idea
This idea comes from just a few goofy sketches I made over the summer. I think this would make a great small sculpture. Almost the size of a baseball, like a fidget toy for a desk but it stares at you instead.
These are the original sketches, they just make me laugh uncontrollably.
Idea #5: KFC's Secret Ingredient
This is another sketch I found in my sketchbook from the summer. I raised chickens growing up, maybe I can find a theme with that.
My previous sculptures:
This sculpture is my favorite piece to date. Partially due to the bronze/wax process being my favorite form of working. The end product was just exactly what I had envisioned and seeing such an odd creature being brought to life in bronze is so endearing to me.
This piece is one of my favorites due to the odd direction I took to create a door knocker. Grabbing the tongue to use the knocker is a creative decision that I desire to replicate again.
This light is my favorite thing I have fabricated. I haven't loved the fabrication process to much in previous projects. However this sculpture consistently call me back to it. I still carry an odd amount of pride in this piece, despite knowing how much more detailed orientated I wanted the piece to be. This light constantly feels like a first in a long line of projects i want to tackle in the future.
Going Forward:
- Bronze - Cast Iron - Aluminum
- Wax
- Steel
- Plaster (Specifically carving)
- Plastics
Cast Iron:
For the UW and San Diego Iron pours I wanna utilize the opportunities to pour as much metal as possible. I wanna gain as much experience at these events to push my career forward. I also wanna produce as many pieces as I can for each event.
Thematic Threads:
Monstrous caricatures of emotions - I want to keep up with the theme or illustrating complex emotions and phycological functions as monsters. Growing up I struggled to understand the more complex and unpleasant emotions and nuances of being an adult. So I want to personify these concepts into "creatures of the night" to help ground them more in reality and give it a tangible body. In this way I can associate these feeling to something physical, making it way less intangible. The creatures however must be twisted and contorted to still elude to their un-explainable nature.
Industrial Gothic - The blending of the industrial look with the heavy detailed iconography of baroque and gothic architecture. This has been a direction I have pondered for a while. This thread comes from my love of historic European and brutalist architecture, with my interest in the industrial revolution and machinery. This thematic thread is more of a blending of my preferred aesthetics, I'm still trying to create/find a good continues theme to back it up.
Recent Artists Inspiration:
Tomàs Barceló
Sculptor
Doug Stanat
Ceramic sculptor
Pascal Blanche:
3D/2D Rendering
I feel that you already have a strong idea of the direction you would like to go in, as well as a body of work. Also, there is a constant theme in your pieces. I enjoy the variety of textures and strangeness of your pieces. Some of your artist inspirations remind me of mythological creatures, but more of the unsettling, grotesque ones. Is mythology an interest for you? I believe there are some stories that can relate to your themes, and might be interesting. Or the movie 'Pan's Labyrinth' would be a recommendation. There are some strange creatures there. Also, it is a foreign film but you should be able to watch it with subtitles. Overall, I would like to see all your sketches come to life. There's always something new to spot in them when viewing them in the round.
ReplyDeleteAn artist I think you might be interested in Erika Sanada (https://www.erikasanada.com/).
ReplyDeleteMatteo,
ReplyDeleteI don't find the first theme you mention to be corny at all. In fact I find it to be a very interesting and new take on the idea of a wallflower. It redefines the meaning and transforms it into a new category that I feel more people can relate to. I feel as if bugs are often very misunderstood creatures and people tend to not want to get close or interact with them per say. This aspect ties along nicely with the theme you want to explore.
I definitely would agree with Bri and say you should check out the film Pan's Labyrinth if you haven't already. The creatures within the film and the costume design are just incredible.
One thing I could see you doing is combined this industrial/gothic style you mentioned with these creatures you love to create. I have already seen you combine ideas of machine and 'organic' (like the shrimp) and I feel like you could continue with that as well.
I honestly really like your theme for your larger bug piece and I don't think it is too cliche. I can relate to being a wallflower and still struggle with social interactions. Having an actual bug on the wall watching everyone is a fun spin on the idea that makes you dig a little bit to find the theme. I also like how all of your ideas for future pieces are connected through the theme as well as the art style. Each piece feels a little whimsy with the various scales while also unnerving. Each is unique but isn't too different from the rest.
ReplyDeleteYour wall bug idea is not corny at all! I think it is a feeling many people can relate to. Have you thought about maybe putting your bug… on the ceiling? Or maybe the upper half of a wall? Every time a bug scares me when I come around the corner, it is usually sitting where the wall meets the ceiling, threatening to jump on me. I know you are trying to cast many of the components for your bug, but if you already have the molds, then… maybe try a round or two with paper? Or perhaps foam?
ReplyDeleteDespite how excited you are about your big bug, I would be remiss not to point out that your idea #3 is incredibly strong. The angler fish of imposter syndrome is compositionally intelligent, and the visuals line up with your concept SUPER well. If you don't make it as a sculpture, your sketch is going to live in my head for the rest of time anyway, so it's fine.
Have you been to MeowWolf in Denver? The Numina room is full of so many strange blorpy creatures, and I’m confident you would love them! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J11eaDUq5EA )
Hi Matteo,
ReplyDeleteI agree with everyone above regarding your first idea. I don't think it is corny at all and believe that it puts a new spin on the idea of being a wallflower. I enjoy seeing a continuous thread all throughout these ideas and they definitely remind me of emotions brought to a tangible object such as a monster. Emotions are powerful, interesting, unique, and sometimes unpleasant to deal with and these ideas pull all those terms together in a cohesive and visually interesting way.
A little out of the blue, but with this theme specifically I was reminded of the anime series called Jujitsu Kaisen. In this series, which can be watched in English on Netflix, human emotions cause these creatures called curses to form and I think some of the forms seen there would be inspiring to see.
You've gotten the artist Lee Bontecue as a recommendation quite a bit over the last year so I thought I'd pull together some other artists that remind me of you. They include Ashley Bickerton, Ann Withers, and Anna Chulanova.