the artwork of martino catalano

martino catalano - statement

The imagery in my work is a confluence of input comprising of personal experiences and deeper thoughts and dreams/nightmares. Aesthetic aspects of every day things such as human anatomy, behaviour and sexuality and 'intangible reality' and the fascination that is still with us of the spirit-world and alternative existence will leach into my sculpting spontaneously. I've always been drawn with a mixture of revulsion and passion to bizarre and often shocking images laced with an exotic and unfathomable aura.

I'm still on the lookout for 'eye-openers' equivalent to those which shocked, frightened and intrigued me in my more impressionable days. I have found that the Internet and the emergence of certain publications and musicians (still considered 'underground' or 'alternative') have blown away all the crass pretentiousness and superficiality of what is generally looked upon as 'off-the-wall' in art, music and performance. These 'eye-openers' or 'otherness' are what I try to grasp while working.

I take what is just out of reach of both reality and paranormal situations by personifying or objectifying what is invisible and apparently without substance such as an orgasm, the scream of somebody suffering, the psyche of a dead person or living mental anguish/love/bliss and real fear. I put all these aspects into my 'boiler' together with my more accessible passions: classical art, anatomy, music, spiritualism, erotica, mythology, ancient cultures, tribal rites, taboo subjects and zoology. What comes out is a randomised/processed amalgam of parts and thoughts in sculptured form which I call 'NEW SYMBOLISM'. Each piece deals with a captured (and subsequently compressed) essence of momentary or continuous and transcendent insights, be they good or bad.

My work simply tries to 'photograph' the flip-side of the experience veil.

martino has written a longer article about the new symbolism in his artwork, which can be found in the articles section of this site by clicking here

more of martino's work can be seen on his website