The contemporary art of Nicolas Denino: a journey from Uruguay to Italy. Liquid” art interpreting the human soul arrives in the showrooms of Aspesi and Louis Vuitton, the artist’s paintings and installations feature a distinctive blue hue, inspired by his family tradition
Uruguayan-born Nicolas Denino moved to Italy eight years ago not only for work but also to follow his family roots, as his great-grandfather was from the Abruzzo region.
The artistic career of Nicolas blossomed in our beautiful country. He has participated in numerous exhibitions, such as the Solo ‘Contrasts’ Show at the Ceravento Gallery in Pescara, the ‘Liquid Project’ site specific installation for Louis Vuitton (https://www.we-wealth.com/news/pleasure assets/altri%20beni%20di%20lusso/yayoi-kusama-e-louis-vuitton-la-collaborazione-si-rinnova) in Forte Dei Marmi, the solo show at Aspesi in Rome and the Numero 20 artistic residency in Florence. His works are exhibited in great venues, such as Maison La Minervetta in Sorrento, moreover, on 24 March, the artist will inaugurate the “Pages” solo exhibition where we will be able to see some of the works created in Marrakech, at the Salle d’Exposition Bremen in Germany.
Blue and the shape of the circle
Blue is the defining feature in Nicolas Denino’s work, a color that has been a feature in his life since childhood. His family of origin owned a large company that distributed bottled water throughout the country and blue was the color of their brand. Nicolas realized the first site-specific work of his career at the age of 11 when he painted his entire bedroom blue, including the ceiling. Needless to say, blue has always meant peace, tranquillity and depth in Nicolas’ life. Blue is the color of the Atlantic Ocean, which is one of the main features of Montevideo, the city where he grew up. Every afternoon, he would walk to the nearby beach and enjoy the irresistible and constant appeal of that immense blue expanse.
The circle is another distinctive element of Denino’s works, as it represents a form of ‘concentration’ but also represents the human being. Nicolas combines liquidity and humanity to tell us: “One day, as I observed a bottle of sparkling water, I stopped to look at those little bubbles that form at the bottom and rise up very quickly. I imagined each one of them to be a human being that, after originating from a liquid substance and in connection with the other bubbles, follows a vital impetus that pushes them up toward the surface. That’s the moment when I began to use the circle as a metaphor for human beings.”
Here is my interview with the artist
How many years have you lived in Italy and what made you choose this country?
After living for eight years in Barcelona and then in Madrid, where I worked as a retail manager for a large company in the fashion industry, I was offered a transfer to Italy to take care of a few openings of clothing stores. I accepted the offer immediately.
My connection to Italy comes from the past, as my great-grandfather was originally from the Abruzzo region. In the 1950s, he moved to Uruguay where he settled and started a family. Moving to Italy was a return to my roots for me. Last year, I had the opportunity to visit my great-grandfather’s town of origin, accompanied by gallerist Loris Maccarone from the Ceravento gallery. I also went to Pratola Peligna, where I had the pleasure of meeting
the mayor, whose surname is ‘Di Nino’ (with a space between the two words), and that’s when I discovered that this was my great-grandfather’s original surname.
Eight years ago I moved to Milan and that’s when I truly settled in Italy, living for two years in Florence and returning about a year ago to Milan where I currently live.
Where did your connection and passion for art come from?
I have always felt a great artistic and creative energy in me, even when I was a child. I have always been very passionate about ceramic work but I also worked as an actor both on TV and in theatres. At a very young age, I participated in a famous Uruguayan TV program called ‘Cacho Bochinche’, which is still broadcast today. I was part of the show’s team, choreographing, dancing and supporting Cacho de la Cruz, a famous host. The TV program would also change in winter, transforming itself into a live entertainment theatre show. I have always been very attached to art, in a broad sense. For a while, I worked in a different field, but my artistic soul never stopped beating until 2018, when I decided to devote myself entirely to the world of creativity, leaving my job as a fashion retail manager. At that time, I was in Milan and began to fully dedicate myself to the study of painting, art and ceramics, finding my own artistic language and style. It was the beginning of my artistic production.
What is art for you?
This is one of the most difficult questions for me. I think it is a way of expressing myself and communicating, but it is also an outlet, we could say it is my “life jacket”. Art allows me to give form to emotions, to translate feelings into something tangible. I also believe that art is a bridge that facilitates social change, a sort of panacea that can bring relief to those who can absorb its content.
What is the spark that lights your creative fire, the acorn from which your poetics and work develop, as Hillman would say?
My artistic poetics is inspired by Zygmunt Bauman’s (https://www.we-wealth.com/news/pleasure assets/Arte/larte-e-i-suoi-trend-nei-prossimi-anni) theory about romantic relationships, which the Polish philosopher called ‘liquid love’, i.e. “love torn between the desire to experience emotions on the one hand, and the fear of actually binding oneself to someone on the other.”
What stimulates and inspires me is observing human behavior and society.
Another triggering aspect of my creative process is ‘movement’, I need to be in the flow and feel free, which is exactly what is happening now in Marrakech as I produce the works for my next exhibition. At this stage of the work, I need to be alone, so that I can move freely and easily and I can find the right concentration and condition to conceive an artwork.
I cannot have distractions around me.
What is your relationship with the market and collectors?
I am a firm believer in “know your collectors!” motto. I really enjoy knowing and having a personal relationship with my collectors, and I know almost all of them. I love engaging with them and understanding what my works convey to them. Very often I make site-specific installations, which is what made my work successful. In those cases, the installation was conceived together with the collector; we decided the number of works, the size and then the composition. This exchange is important for me, it is like a flow that creates the work and also the personal relationship.
I work with several galleries with whom I organize exhibitions, and I always ask my gallerists to be involved in everything that has to do with work.
Of all the projects you have completed, which is the one that is closest to your heart?
The work I feel most attached to is ‘Imitation of nature’, which stems from the premise that art imitates nature. Based on this concept, I designed ‘new matter’ using recycled materials: marble dust, natural pigment, raw oil, textiles and recycled wood. Using these materials, I created what I call a ‘new nature’. The production of these works lasted approximately one year. I initially made twenty frames using recycled wood, I then mounted a spongy fabric (also recycled) on the frame and then I started applying different materials on top of the canvases every day (natural acrylic, marble dust, blue pigment and natural oil). I layered them over an entire year and, despite being the most time-consuming series of works I have ever completed, it was also the one I was most satisfied with.
The works were exhibited in Pescara, at the Ceravento Gallery, and they were all sold.
If you were a material what would you be?
Clay. It is a malleable, natural material. It can always be recycled and it changes over time.
What do you think is the role of art in society?
As I said before, art is ‘an antidote’.
When you go to see an exhibition, the essential thing is that feeling of transformation you perceive when you leave, at the end. The change that takes place in your essence and mind is the antidote for nurturing social change, new thinking and emotional evolution.
Uruguayan-born Nicolas Denino moved to Italy eight years ago not only for work but also to follow his family roots, as his great-grandfather was from the Abruzzo region.
The artistic career of Nicolas blossomed in our beautiful country. He has participated in numerous exhibitions, such as the Sol…
Uruguayan-born Nicolas Denino moved to Italy eight years ago not only for work but also to follow his family roots, as his great-grandfather was from the Abruzzo region.
The artistic career of Nicolas blossomed in our beautiful country. He has participated in numerous exhibitions, such as the Solo ‘Contrasts’ Show at the Ceravento Gallery in Pescara, the ‘Liquid Project’ site specific installation for Louis Vuitton (https://www.we-wealth.com/news/pleasure assets/altri%20beni%20di%20lusso/yayoi-kusama-e-louis-vuitton-la-collaborazione-si-rinnova) in Forte Dei Marmi, the solo show at Aspesi in Rome and the Numero 20 artistic residency in Florence. His works are exhibited in great venues, such as Maison La Minervetta in Sorrento, moreover, on 24 March, the artist will inaugurate the “Pages” solo exhibition where we will be able to see some of the works created in Marrakech, at the Salle d’Exposition Bremen in Germany.
Blue and the shape of the circle
Blue is the defining feature in Nicolas Denino’s work, a color that has been a feature in his life since childhood. His family of origin owned a large company that distributed bottled water throughout the country and blue was the color of their brand. Nicolas realized the first site-specific work of his career at the age of 11 when he painted his entire bedroom blue, including the ceiling. Needless to say, blue has always meant peace, tranquillity and depth in Nicolas’ life. Blue is the color of the Atlantic Ocean, which is one of the main features of Montevideo, the city where he grew up. Every afternoon, he would walk to the nearby beach and enjoy the irresistible and constant appeal of that immense blue expanse.
The circle is another distinctive element of Denino’s works, as it represents a form of ‘concentration’ but also represents the human being. Nicolas combines liquidity and humanity to tell us: “One day, as I observed a bottle of sparkling water, I stopped to look at those little bubbles that form at the bottom and rise up very quickly. I imagined each one of them to be a human being that, after originating from a liquid substance and in connection with the other bubbles, follows a vital impetus that pushes them up toward the surface. That’s the moment when I began to use the circle as a metaphor for human beings.”
Here is my interview with the artist
How many years have you lived in Italy and what made you choose this country?
After living for eight years in Barcelona and then in Madrid, where I worked as a retail manager for a large company in the fashion industry, I was offered a transfer to Italy to take care of a few openings of clothing stores. I accepted the offer immediately.
My connection to Italy comes from the past, as my great-grandfather was originally from the Abruzzo region. In the 1950s, he moved to Uruguay where he settled and started a family. Moving to Italy was a return to my roots for me. Last year, I had the opportunity to visit my great-grandfather’s town of origin, accompanied by gallerist Loris Maccarone from the Ceravento gallery. I also went to Pratola Peligna, where I had the pleasure of meeting
the mayor, whose surname is ‘Di Nino’ (with a space between the two words), and that’s when I discovered that this was my great-grandfather’s original surname.
Eight years ago I moved to Milan and that’s when I truly settled in Italy, living for two years in Florence and returning about a year ago to Milan where I currently live.
Where did your connection and passion for art come from?
I have always felt a great artistic and creative energy in me, even when I was a child. I have always been very passionate about ceramic work but I also worked as an actor both on TV and in theatres. At a very young age, I participated in a famous Uruguayan TV program called ‘Cacho Bochinche’, which is still broadcast today. I was part of the show’s team, choreographing, dancing and supporting Cacho de la Cruz, a famous host. The TV program would also change in winter, transforming itself into a live entertainment theatre show. I have always been very attached to art, in a broad sense. For a while, I worked in a different field, but my artistic soul never stopped beating until 2018, when I decided to devote myself entirely to the world of creativity, leaving my job as a fashion retail manager. At that time, I was in Milan and began to fully dedicate myself to the study of painting, art and ceramics, finding my own artistic language and style. It was the beginning of my artistic production.
What is art for you?
This is one of the most difficult questions for me. I think it is a way of expressing myself and communicating, but it is also an outlet, we could say it is my “life jacket”. Art allows me to give form to emotions, to translate feelings into something tangible. I also believe that art is a bridge that facilitates social change, a sort of panacea that can bring relief to those who can absorb its content.
What is the spark that lights your creative fire, the acorn from which your poetics and work develop, as Hillman would say?
My artistic poetics is inspired by Zygmunt Bauman’s (https://www.we-wealth.com/news/pleasure assets/Arte/larte-e-i-suoi-trend-nei-prossimi-anni) theory about romantic relationships, which the Polish philosopher called ‘liquid love’, i.e. “love torn between the desire to experience emotions on the one hand, and the fear of actually binding oneself to someone on the other.”
What stimulates and inspires me is observing human behavior and society.
Another triggering aspect of my creative process is ‘movement’, I need to be in the flow and feel free, which is exactly what is happening now in Marrakech as I produce the works for my next exhibition. At this stage of the work, I need to be alone, so that I can move freely and easily and I can find the right concentration and condition to conceive an artwork.
I cannot have distractions around me.
What is your relationship with the market and collectors?
I am a firm believer in “know your collectors!” motto. I really enjoy knowing and having a personal relationship with my collectors, and I know almost all of them. I love engaging with them and understanding what my works convey to them. Very often I make site-specific installations, which is what made my work successful. In those cases, the installation was conceived together with the collector; we decided the number of works, the size and then the composition. This exchange is important for me, it is like a flow that creates the work and also the personal relationship.
I work with several galleries with whom I organize exhibitions, and I always ask my gallerists to be involved in everything that has to do with work.
Of all the projects you have completed, which is the one that is closest to your heart?
The work I feel most attached to is ‘Imitation of nature’, which stems from the premise that art imitates nature. Based on this concept, I designed ‘new matter’ using recycled materials: marble dust, natural pigment, raw oil, textiles and recycled wood. Using these materials, I created what I call a ‘new nature’. The production of these works lasted approximately one year. I initially made twenty frames using recycled wood, I then mounted a spongy fabric (also recycled) on the frame and then I started applying different materials on top of the canvases every day (natural acrylic, marble dust, blue pigment and natural oil). I layered them over an entire year and, despite being the most time-consuming series of works I have ever completed, it was also the one I was most satisfied with.
The works were exhibited in Pescara, at the Ceravento Gallery, and they were all sold.
If you were a material what would you be?
Clay. It is a malleable, natural material. It can always be recycled and it changes over time.
What do you think is the role of art in society?
As I said before, art is ‘an antidote’.
When you go to see an exhibition, the essential thing is that feeling of transformation you perceive when you leave, at the end. The change that takes place in your essence and mind is the antidote for nurturing social change, new thinking and emotional evolution.
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