Amelia’s Magazine | Meet Cristian Grossi: Featured Artist from That Which We Do Not Understand

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Cristian Grossi lives in Italy, where he works on a plethora of art, design and fashion projects. He studied computer science and his bold graphic style is influenced by modernism, art nouveau, a love of nature and magical folk stories. Ver Sacrum was inspired by a night spent in hospital, when Cristian began to relate the behaviour of the human body to the Turing Machine. He imagined two demiurges implanting apparatus to combine with body parts, the unknown becoming part of the known in our flesh.

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Your image was inspired by a night spent in hospital, how has its creation helped you heal?
About a month ago I was in the hospital, my dad had very delicate surgery. I thought about how fallacious the body is, and the perfection of the mathematical modeling of the inorganic systems that I studied at the university. Take for example the Turing Machine, it’s complete. My demiurges mysteriously assemble a perfect body, a system that is in balance. Maybe they are creating the perfect body for my dad.

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How long did it take to put together and what elements does it contain?
The image is made of more than 300 anatomical drawings showing human body organs and membranes (among them pancreas, lungs, brain, testicles and yet the liver, intestine, bone and fetuses). I am celebrating the Jugendstil (art nouveaux) style, affected with contemporary digital contaminations. 33 working days were required to develop my allegory for the creation of human beings. Ver Sacrum features two female demiurges putting together a newborn.

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What is your working process?
I start my drawings using pencil and Chinese ink on paper, then add elaborations to them on the computer. I believe that the transition to digital is a mandatory step for all contemporary designers because scanning images is a key step to fix ideas.

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What is your favourite subject matter and why?
I’m attracted to all that is kitsch. The surplus has always attracted me, and I think that is part of my Jugendstil nature. The strange thing is that I’m passionate about everything that goes beyond, and all that’s missing: the moment before death, of a sneeze, the cavities of the times in the dialogues of a conversation. I believe that the completeness is not interesting.

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You have recently had an exhibition – can you share some of this work and explain what it was about?
Yes, I have just had an exhibition of video art and textiles. I design fabrics for some Italian fashion brands and themes always stretch into other artistic projects such as video art, books and installations. The latest project is a study of the roots of the Liberty style typical of my city, Salsomaggiore Terme, with an attempt on my part to recover and re-elaborate the details in a new artistic language.

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You are a very busy designer: what other jobs have you completed recently, and what are you most looking forward to working on in the coming months?
Yes, I am very busy. This Christmas around 18,000 Italian families will receive my ball which has been illustrated for a non-profit, so I’m very excited. In a few months my new collection of scarfs and bags for a big fashion brand will be released, and I have been involved in mood boards, ideas and stylistic direction. I have also designed a series of posters to promote art exhibitions in Italian museums and festivals and a series of limited edition stationery.

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Where are the best places to go for creative inspiration online in Italy?
Italian creativity is very special. Fashion, architecture and design are born in Milan, and it is there that these are processed. But Milan is a city sad and cynical, so I think the source of true creativity is in the provinces. The typical is very genuine, if you can hang out for the provinces to discover new enzymes, you understand the genuineness of color, flavor and shape. So if you want to take a shower of true creativity Italian go to festivals in Emilia, eats local food, meet local people. Check out online projects such as gnambox which covers food that is typical of the Italian tradition, or weloooooveit (www.weloooooveit.com) which celebrates all that is cool of Italy, or Dolce & Gabbana’s Swide, which offers the best of the sweet life.

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Read more about Cristian’s Ver Sacrum here and secure your gold leaf fine art print here.

Categories ,#TWWDNU, ,Anatomical, ,art nouveaux, ,Cristian Grossi, ,gnambox, ,illustration, ,Italian, ,Jugendstil, ,Salsomaggiore Terme, ,Swide, ,That Which We Do Not Understand, ,Turing Machine, ,Ver Sacrum, ,weloooooveit

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Amelia’s Magazine | Amelia’s Magazine 10th Anniversary Kickstarter Campaign: That Which We Do Not Understand

Amelias Magazine TWWDNU Kickstarter header
Amelia’s Magazine is 10 years old this year, and to celebrate I’m going back into a print!

I’m producing a limited edition gold foiled artists’ book and an exclusive series of A2 limited edition art prints with real gold leaf. Find out more in the video below:

Amelia Gregory at work 2014-AmeliasMagazine
This is where I work at my home just off Brick Lane in East London.

Amelia’s Magazine has continued as a web only magazine since I stopped making it in print, but remains a labour of love since I do not currently take any advertising or sponsored posts. Therefore, in order to realise my dream I am raising money through the Kickstarter crowd funding website. This is a very exciting and nerve-wracking time for me, because I must raise the entire amount of money in order to receive any of it. I therefore need to raise £12,000 (or more) in 24 days and I would love your help in doing so.

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Ver Sacrum by Cristian Grossi. This flashing gif shows how the gold leaf might look on the fine art print.

How you can help:

Please share the campaign amongst your friends on social networks, via email and of course by word of mouth. We are using the hashtag #TWWDNU. It is especially important to drive traffic at the start and encourage Kickstarter to promote the campaign within the Kickstarter community, but every little share counts whenever that may be and I am very grateful for your time and effort.

Please choose one of the Kickstarter rewards for yourself from the campaign page. Pledge for rare back issues, books, hand screen printed t-shirts, postcards and of course the limited edition book and art prints. The book will not be available in many shops and I am offering rock bottom prices to early bird bidders to get the campaign rolling.

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Shamaness by Essi Kimpimäki.

A bit more about this project:

That Which We Do Not Understand 10th anniversary artists’ book:
The book features art and creative writing about That Which We Do Not Understand, a theme that will explore the many ways in which humans seek to understand the things that they don’t understand in their lives, inspired by my personal experience of two late miscarriages. The book is being printed on high quality recycled paper from Antalis by Principal Colour in Kent and features gold foil on the cover and gold spot printing throughout. The final publication will be beautiful and inspiring, full of thought provoking contributions that question and celebrate the miraculousness of life. The book will bring contributors’ work to a large audience, and better still, artists will receive 50% of profits from sales of the fine art prints, which will be made in editions of 10.

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Tribal Cumulus by Mateusz Napieralski (Gust of Wind).

The artworks and writing for the book have been found through an open brief on the Amelia’s Magazine website, which many of my readers will have already seen and perhaps even submitted to. The deadline has now been extended for Kickstarter, and closes on midnight (GMT) on Sunday 16th November so you can still submit work, but please do it sooner rather than later. The book will be designed as the campaign progresses and if everything goes to plan it will go to print in late November, and you will receive your copy in good time for Christmas. The launch party is planned for Thursday 11th December at Tatty Devine’s shop on Brick Lane, and the prints will be on exhibition until the end of the year. Any unsold prints will be available through the East End Prints website.

TWWDNU front cover collage meteors, meteor showers
Cover art prints:
These are A3 sized and will feature the cover image from That Which We Do Not Understand in abundant real gold leaf on the special shimmering gold cover stock that we are using for the book cover. I have not yet designed the cover art but you can be sure it will be eye-catching and amazing (see my inspiration above): think meteor showers and 10 Years on top of the Amelia’s Magazine logo encased in a flaming meteor… Grab a piece of Amelia’s Magazine history, and get in early to take advantage of my amazing early bird deal.

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Mater Gaia by Niall Grant.

Fine art prints:
I have chosen five artists for my first round of fine art gold leaf A2 prints: each has created a very beautiful and very different piece of art that will be printed up as an archival quality giclee print with hand applied REAL GOLD LEAF highlights by Harwood King. There will only be ten of each artwork available at the amazing price of £180, so make sure you order yours early and don’t miss out.

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The Empress by Daria Hlazatova.

Pot Luck prints:
I am also offering prints at the cheaper price of £140, which must be purchased sight unseen – these are for those of you who trust my taste and are willing to take a bit of a gamble! The more pledges I receive the more prints will be produced, so I look forward to sharing those choices with you as they are made.

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Example artwork from That Which We Do Not Understand (clockwise from top left) by Laura Wilson, Adam Corns, Sarah Tanat-Jones and Dorry Spikes.

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Example artwork from That Which We Do Not Understand (clockwise from top left) by Emma Farrarons, Maia Fjord, Sarah Parris and Yoko Furusho.

You can see sneak peaks of the artwork that is being created if you follow the #TWWDNU hashtag on twitter and instagram. Please do take a peek at more of the goodies below, then click on over and support my Kickstarter campaign page here. Thankyou so much!

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12 exclusive postcards featuring a range of print processes (foiling, glitter, pearlescent ink) for only £5.

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Rare back issues for only £10.

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Beautiful hand screen-printed t-shirts at the rock bottom price of £25: perfect Christmas presents.

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My two illustration books in a bundle for only £30, currently retailing for £23 each on Amazon in the UK.

Categories ,#TWWDNU, ,10 Years, ,Adam Corns, ,Antalis, ,Brick Lane, ,Creative Writing, ,Cristian Grossi, ,Daria Hlazatova, ,Dorry Spikes, ,East End Prints, ,Emma Farrarons, ,Essi Kimpimaki, ,Gust of Wind, ,Harwood King, ,illustration, ,Kickstarter, ,Laura Wilson, ,Maia Fjord, ,Mateusz Napieralski, ,Meteor, ,Meteor shower, ,Miscarriage, ,Niall Grant, ,Open brief, ,principal colour, ,Sarah Parris, ,Sarah Tanat-Jones, ,Shamaness, ,That Which We Do Not Understand, ,Ver Sacrum, ,Yoko Furusho

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