10 Questions with Pol Petrino

Born in 1996, Pol Petrino is an Italian artist based in Novara. His artistic production, using stones and soils as mediums, is focused on the synergy between human beings and Mother Nature. Smashing and layering stones on a canvas, Pol creates a unique colour and an old texture capable of animating and making a work eternal.

He graduated from the Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio with professor Bijoy Jain from Studio Mumbai. During his university studies, he cultivated his passion for art and painting, intensifying his artistic production after graduation. The acquaintance of the architect and artist Bijoy Jain marks a turning point in Pol's artistic conception.

In his works, Pol conveys everything that impresses him, places, objects, people, and stories. In recent years he has traveled extensively, in a way he had never experienced before, meeting people and cultures completely distant from his own. It is in these pilgrimages that a new conception of beauty arose in him, made of simplicity and a deeper understanding of visual and spiritual language. The stones of his travels become mediums capable of expressing a beauty characterized by a return to practice, to know the earth as a raw material.

www.polpetrino.com | @polpetrino

Pol Petrino - Portrait in his studio | Photo by Karin White

ARTIST STATEMENT

“Impressed by everything I experience, places, objects, people, stories.”

Life is something we try to understand by experiencing it. Human beings are eager to own everything. And when we reach something, we destroy it, trying to arrive somewhere else. Mother Nature is our guide through this experience. And when we disrespect her, she reminds us the truth, that we are her sons, souls who inhabited her wonderful creation.

During this path, we have the duty to respect our mother and try to embrace all she faces to us, always reminding us one thing: we are amazing souls aging with her.

im 27 & im 28, soil and stone on canvas, 150x100 cm each, 2022 © Pol Petrino

INTERVIEW

First of all, let's talk about your background. Could you tell us a little more about yourself and how you began making art?

I am an Italian artist currently based in Novara. I love to travel and discover places and cultures completely different from those in which I have always lived. My artistic production is focused on using stones and soils as mediums, and my research deals with the synergy between human beings and Mother Nature. In recent years I have started painting to let off steam, meditate, and understand myself, but it is only in the last year that I have developed this very personal technique of using natural elements.
I have always been fascinated by the art world but even more by creating. I started making art when I felt the need when I lived one of those experiences that lead a person to create something to express it. It was in 2018 when I was living in Barcelona, where it all began. Today I can easily say that it has been one of the most significant experiences of my life so far, certainly the crucial period that formed part of the person I am today.

im 20 (detail), soil and stone on canvas, 100x180 cm, 2022 © Pol Petrino

When did you decide to become an artist? And what do you wish you knew about contemporary art before you got started?

First of all, I think that no one decides to become an artist. I would define it more as a process, dictated by everything we live. Experience after experience, we go to define our artistic path, our life path on this wonderful planet. A process also includes phases of inactivity, time in which we reflect on our role in the world, on our being. I think that sometimes reflecting is much more important than acting.
Honestly, nothing. I just followed my creative path without thinking about which market I should have presented myself to. Everything I've done so far is the result of my experiences; my artistic expression evolves and matures with me. It's inevitable. I believe it is what we do that defines our audience, not the opposite.

Your recent travels seem to have had a strong influence on your work. What did you find out about yourself and your art during those travels? And how do these experiences are reflected in your work?

"Everything?" I think traveling is the best exercise for our soul.
I used to travel without programs, relying on the people I met. Every trip became a pilgrimage in search of something new, something that could change my concept of life. The first of these pilgrimages was to Morocco. I found there a completely different reality from mine—a culture founded on principles rooted in time. What fascinated me the most was the contact with Nature. Men live in symbiosis with her, and respect her. Here is where I started to relate to Mother Nature in a different way. I began looking at her with different eyes and felt the need to seek deeper contact with the place I was exploring. During my travels, I have learned how important it is to respect nature and every single living being.
From that day on, whenever I find myself in a new place, the first thing I do is observe the ground on which I walk, its texture, and its color. I touch it, and the idea that soil has always been there, that it has known generations after generations, fascinates me. It becomes a timeless connection. Over time, looking for stones and soils has become an exciting way to get to know new places, a purpose that creates an intense bond with the surroundings.

Pol in his outdoor studio | photo by Karin White © Pol Petrino

Is there any experience in particular that made you realize where you wanted to go as an artist? In other words, how did you develop your peculiar style?

It was certainly crucial for my artistic career to get to know the renowned architect and artist Bijoy Jain. He has been my master's degree professor, a person who transformed my way of approaching life and, consequently, also art. He taught me humility, letting me discover the Indian culture, which until then was foreign to me. From then on, my concept of beauty changed radically. Authentic beauty has no frills, it lives in close contact with us. In our daily life, it is found everywhere, and the important thing is to be aware of it. Bijoy always told me to be in the present moment. Only in this way can we live in close contact with authentic beauty.

Let's talk about your creative process. Where do you draw inspiration from nowadays?

Wherever I go, I always have a notebook and a pen with me. Many times, during my travels, I sit down and write thoughts and poems which reflect what I am experiencing. Together with poems, I draw, abstracting what I see and what I feel. Everything is deeply connected to the culture and place I'm exploring. This is how my artworks are born.
Most of my abstractions refer to explored places and how my soul perceives them. Other times, they tell about people who have thrilled me, who have passed on something to me in knowing them, and who, even if for a while, have guided me in my life path. What I report on my works, therefore, represents what has impressed me during my experiences, from the most common to the most absurd. When I then go back to my atelier, I reopen the notebook and start creating, immersing myself in that exact moment.

im 19, soil and stone on canvas, 140x105 cm, 2022 © Pol Petrino

What about the colors that you use? They all come from the same palette; they are very earthy and feel almost organic. How did you choose them? And what do they represent for you?

Actually, it is true. All my colors are from the same palette, they all come from Mother Earth.
All the colors I use are natural and created through a long process. The creation of each artwork here becomes an emotional journey. From the experience of collecting the stone, the carriage of the raw material to my studio, through its grinding up to obtain a mixture that can be used on the canvas. It is a continuous emotion. This pursuit of color through raw materials represents a fundamental part of my artistic research. Each color is cataloged in a personal archive - a collection that becomes both a colors' library and a travel diary, a medium to perceive explored places.
Moreover, using raw natural elements, canvases will mutate over time. Each piece has its own life, and you can almost perceive this vital layer that ages over time. It creates a synergy between the author, the medium, and the viewer.

You graduated in 2021, so most of your experiences with art are post-pandemic. What do you think of the art world and market? What are the changes a young artist like you would like to see in the near future?

In my opinion, it is a very complex world, but at the same time, very stimulating. For sure, it is not easy to get involved. I can just say my feeling for the art world and market are always swinging between hate and love. Anyway, I try to go on my own path, remembering what I believe in and letting myself be led by my passion.
I do not think the world of art will undergo upheavals in the next few years, and it is certainly moving towards the virtual, which can lead to greater accessibility to artistic realities, both for emerging artists and art enthusiasts. On the other hand, I also think that the pandemic has led many people, artists and not, to seek a more direct connection with everything around us, in every field of life, including art.

im 20, soil and stone on canvas, 100x180 cm, 2022 © Pol Petrino

What are you working on now, and what are your plans for the future? Anything exciting you can tell us about?

I am currently working on some new pieces. I feel this is a very intense phase of my career, and I am inspired by interesting trips I have done in the last few months. I can't wait to show you my new series.
As to my future plans - I am currently focusing on expanding my network in Europe as well as in Asia and the Middle East. In the near future, I will also reveal new dates of exhibitions in which I will take part, as well as announce new collaborations.

What do you hope to accomplish this year, both in terms of career goals and personal life?

Many plans, but I will reveal them at the right moment.

Finally, share something you would like the world to know about you.

I have already told you a lot about me. I would like to remind everyone to be in the present moment, and thanks for reading this far.

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