The “genius” of Le Marche, as a regional promo stated some time ago, is not only visible in the great characters of the past. Among the world-known Leopardi, Raffaello and Rossini, we shouldn’t forget the present artists that are well worth a post in our blog.
Cristiano at work
One of these artists is also a fellow citizen of Isabelle, Elke and I: Cristiano Dellabella.
Cristiano has been collecting natural, and not only natural, elements from the nature since his early age. He could see in those dismissed objects something in action, trapped under a lot of dust, dirt or rust. After having studied a scorpion sculpture made of metal bolts, Cristiano got inspired and started to assemble those pieces stored in his garage. This is how an old fork became a tail, an iron piece a leg and his first chimera was brought to life.
Santa Maria delle Moie
Cristiano is a real creative artist and you see it in his paintings, poems, comics, reading sessions and much more. Lately he gathered his collection of creatures in an exhibition, with the help of the Art Historian Sara Tassi. The location was one of the most beautiful Romanesque Abbey we have in our region: Santa Maria in Moie, one-hour drive from Ancona.
The exhibition’s name “Le chimere delle colline” (The chimeras of the hilly landscape) is more than a reference to our landscape. Being born and raised in Le Marche means to be feel naturally part of it. For this same reason le colline is exactly what I miss most during my stays abroad.
Chimera is a Greek mythology creature made of different animal parts, hence the creature made by Cristiano. There is not a unique interpretation to them (but, seriously, which kind of art only has one interpretation?) and in some of the creature you can see either a Mexican, a crane or a spider. The chimeras were carefully displayed in the various rooms of the chapter room of the Abbey. A kind of centipede stood out at once, partly because, unlike most other chimeras, it was coloured; the discarded red fire extinguishers of the old theatre in Cupramontana formed the corpus.
This was exactly the experience that my counter blogger Isabella and her husband Erik had during their visit to Cristiano’s exhibition. They had the chance to have a chat with Cristiano.
He is a very busy man not only with his creativity, but also with his engagement with the local festivals and gatherings. Nonetheless, Cristiano tells Isabelle that once he’s busy with his artwork, he often cannot stop. But sometimes it happens that he stops in the middle of a process and creates something only halfway and never gets it done. Isn’t it just what art is supposed to be?
He finds his material everywhere and even the local people bring him what they find in the shed or in the cellar. But he is very picky and takes only parts whose shape inspired him. After all, he does not want to serve as a landfill.
Hence the question: is it recycled art, abstract art? Cristiano refuses to be committed. “I do art for all so that both my mother, who has just graduated from elementary school, and a skilled art historian can enjoy it. I think it’s important to create something so I can exhibit and create a meeting place where people share ideas and thoughts – or just have fun.”
If Cristiano’s art inspired you, just keep an eye out for more exhibition announcements from time to time in the near and far region. Otherwise, you can look for Cristiano in the wine cellar of Colonnara in Cupramontana or while being active in many events in Cupramontana.
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