“Knowing how to observe” is perhaps the first creative act for Ciro. It could give rise to the impulse of recognising the Beautiful that surrounds us, even if often hidden behind the appearances of ruin. This is how Roberto Cipollone presents himself on his website. He is an ingenious Italian artist who has his workshop at the international little town of Loppiano (Florence).

We interviewed him on his return from the inauguration of an exhibition in Japan:

How was your art received in the Land of the Rising Sun?

“The reception was splendid with the typical Asian courteousness. I visited Kyoto thanks to a Tuscan agency that collaborates in furthering relationships between Florence and that Japanese city. I was pleased to find that the set-up organised by them fully matched what I had desired. Someone commented that it seemed like Ikebana done in iron.”

How do you live the creative act?

“For me the creative process is like a kind of therapy. More than with words, I express myself through the transformation of common objects, which when arranged in a certain manner, even astonish me. This process results in  something that amazes, which creates emotions.” 

From where do you get your inspiration?

“I draw inspiration mostly from nature, from the material I find, where at times there are traces of life; especially objects that come from the world of farming. Naturally also from readings, from some film that I’ve seen, images that I grasped through only a glimpse…, or things that amaze you, which you then put into form.” 

The locations you choose for your exhibitions are often odd…

“Until now I chose to hold exhibitions even in unusual locations: for example on the water, or in the open and in the most varied situations. And you hear the reactions of people, at times unprepared to receive an artistic message in these ways. They are positive reactions that help in changing man, who would not have lived without art.” 

Certainly, there is art and art…

“Rather, it is not said that from the beginning art developed for the wellbeing of man, but I believe that man, even before eating, needs beauty. I try to greatly respect the work others have done, especially that in the farming sphere, which at times is even governed by necessity, but where beauty was not excluded, as well as the desire to pass on these values to others. Beauty understood not in terms of affectation but as message of profound values.”

The exhibition is currently underway in Kyoto from 21 May to 9 June.

For information: info@labottegadiciro.it

Official website: http://www.labottegadiciro.it/about/