Marco Mazzoni
Featured artist~ Find Mazzoni’s interview at the end of the page.
Rainforest
Masca
A little Q&A with Marco
Why are most of your subjects women?
I have always believed in matriarchal society. Before they were defined as witches, some women in small Italian villages acted as “bosses,” taking care of people and serving as social organizers for entire populations who’d rely on them in many ways involving both physical and psychological wellbeing. This kind of society has been canceled, and my work is an attempt to remember. I just try to say that another world was possible.
Why do you choose not to show your subjects’ eyes?
I don't care about the portrait. If you draw the eyes you put the viewer in a position to think about the subject and not about the meaning. I have always tried to locate the human being as part of the whole amid flora and fauna, a vital element but one that does not prevail over others.
Have you always been an artist?
Growing up I always hoped to become one, but in my teenage years I did the most far-ranging jobs, from picking tomatoes to working in funeral homes.
Back to Issue IX…
Marco Mazzoni is a Milan-based Italian artist, originally from Tortona. He is generally considered a portrait artist and only uses coloured pencils in his work. Mazzoni's work holds a strong interest in flora and fauna (flora e fauna), and often depicts the female herbalists of 16th—18th Century Sardinia. Notably, Marco created a portrait of musician Anomie Belle included in the album art for Flux, and as the cover of The Good Life EP. Mazzoni received a bachelor's degree in painting from Brera Art Academy in Milan. His work has been exhibited in galleries throughout Europe and the United States.
