Premio Combat Prize

Her goal? To provoke!
To Francesca, art has the same importance as philosophy: its ultimate purpose is to provoke something in the viewer of its time. She feels a compelling urge to convey a message to the viewer, whether a thought or a pure emotion, as strongly as her technical and creative capabilities will allow.
Torn between optimism and surrender, Francesca is haunted by the idea of mankind’s imminent self-destruction. Yet, she believes in a future for humanity of resourceful innovation through reusing, recycling and upcycling. She is fascinated by colours and textures of both artificial and natural elements, which she hunts for in everyday life and plays with in new combinations, pairing and contrasting noble material with rubbish. Her aim is to prove how rubbish is a relative definition and how it can be turned into something useful, fun and even beautiful. She thoroughly enjoys working within both the ethical and the material limitations which this choice entails.
She has a true passion for mosaic, as it allows the use materials of all sorts: she strives to show the beauty and significance of each material uses, in each tiny piece. She never stops learning and experimenting, eagerly crisscrossing the boundary between Mosaic and Mixed Media. She is on a mission to show the incredible - yet still quite unknown - potential of modern mosaic, as a fine art in its own right.
In her early life, Francesca challenged herself by focusing on things that did not come naturally to her (e.g. going into Law after studying Classics). Yet, she tried for years to placate her internal restlessness by living in different countries and cultures (Pordenone, Padua, Denver, London, Paris, New York...). When she reached 40, with the responsibility of a mother, Francesca settled between London and Trieste and found her outlet in what she liked and did best, namely using her hands to create.
Art exhibitions, painting and modelling clay were regular hobbies which never satiated her inherent creative nature. Finally, she entered the Scuola Mosaicisti del Friuli, in Spilimbergo: a whole new world of WONDERS opened up.
She wanted to learn how to do it properly. She found a delightful place in London, Southbank Mosaics [http://southbankmosaics.com], where she obtained a first Award course. She then took a course in Roman mosaics at Scuola Mosaicisti del Friuli [http://scuolamosaicistifriuli.it] in Spilimbergo (Italy), another Certificate at Southbank Mosaics, other courses in Byzantine and Modern mosaics in Spilimbergo, one for families, and promptly enrolled on many other… Italy, Turkey, and what else!
She is now part of the BAMM Committee in the role of Exhibition Coordinator, and has taken permanent residency at the London School of Mosaic, where she holds a shared studio and will teach some short courses from February 2018. Francesca is also a member of the Governing Body of the London School of Mosaic, a member of The Artists’ Pool, and she is in the process of joining a collective with the fellow artists in residence from the Canary Wharf New District 2017 Residency.
Francesca’s aim is to constantly push herself beyond her creative boundaries: experimenting with different subjects, colours, materials, textures, depth, tools or methods... Juggling between the completely different settings of her studios in London and Trieste makes it even more intriguing. Her philosophy is always to learn as much as possible, never to take anything for granted, and then - to make it hers!
EXHIBITIONS & AWARDS (selection)
- Artwork on view/for sale at the ex chiesa di Santa Chiara, Murano, Venice, Italy
- FLUX Exhibition, Chelsea College of Art, London, 11-15 April 18
- ”Threads”, The Artists’ Pool, Espacio Gallery, London, March 18
- BowWow Haus London: designing and decorating a dog kennel, then on exhibition at St Pancras International station, London from January to May 2018, and auctioned for charity. Profits to go to Blue Cross (https://www.bluecross.org.uk/)
- Art exhibition at the LVA Gallery, Sheraton Hotel, Heathrow, London, 15 January – 4 March 2018
- 2nd Place for “Crit Me” at the 3rd annual “Art of Humanity” competition, International Gallery Of The Arts (IGOA), November 2017
- 1st Place for ”Crit Me” at the ”Eclectic Art ” competition by Bauhaus Prairie Art Gallery, October 2017.
- ”Find Me!”, Vernice Contemporanea, Biennale Off. 57. Biennale d’Arte di Venezia, Venice, 1-29 Oct 17
- “Nasty Women UK”, Stour Space, London, 22-24 Sep17. Raising funds for End Violence Against Women
- ”Now That’s What I Call Art”, Laura I. Art Gallery, Ice House Court, London, 7-23 Sept 17
- ”From Rome to London”, St Lawrence Jewry, Guildhall Yard, London, 7 July - 16Sep17
- FLUX Exhibition, Chelsea College of Art, London, 12-16 Jul 17
- ”Threads”, Dundas Street Gallery, Edinburgh EH3 6HZ, 4-15 Jul 17
- Winner of the SOLO exhibition on Light, Space & Time Online Art Gallery, 15 May-15 Jun17
- “Ode to Nature”: 4 artists’ exhibition, Chelsea Fringe, Oxford House Gallery, London, 20 May–4 Jun17
- Winner at the ”I’m In Heaven” Exhibition, Nature Category (3rd Place), Heaven Art Gallery, AZ, May 17
- Uniqueness of Concept and Originality Award at Still Point IX, Still Point Art Gallery, May17
- Winner: Best In Show, ”All Women” Competition, 3D & Mixed Media cat. (1st Place), CAGO, Apr17
- ”We Need to Talk about Clothes”, Hardwick Gallery, Cheltenham, 22-26 April 17!
- Artexpo 2017, Pier 94, NYC, 21 - 24 Apr 17
- Biennale Peschiera del Garda, Caserma dell’Artiglieria, Peschiera del Garda, Italy, 31 Mar–3 Apr17
- Winner at the “Abstract Art” exhibition - 3D Category (1st Place) + Winner - Overall Winner Artists Category (3rd Place)
- ”Threads”, The Artists’ Pool, Espacio Gallery, London, 1-12 March 17
- MeArt - Biennale Internazionale del Mediterraneo, Palermo, Italy, 9-12 March 17
- ”Contemporary Venice”, Palazzo Flangini, Venice, Italy, 14 Dec 2016-14 Jan 17
- Spectrum 2016 with World Wide Art/Artavita, Booth 807, Miami, FL, 30 Nov - 4Dec 16
- ”Oxygen - Fragmented Cities+Identities”, J. Jurado Art Studio, Bogota’, Colombia, 19 Nov-19 Dec 16
- Art San Diego 2016, Balboa Park Activity Center, San Diego, CA, 3-6 Nov 16
- Overall winner at the ”Open No Theme 3D & Mixed Media” exhibition, Contemporary Art Gallery, Nov 16
- Overall Winner of the ”Spotlight Solo Art Contest”, International Gallery of the Arts, 15 Oct-15 Dec 16
- ”Leave/Remain” exhibition, Bank Street Arts, Sheffield, 25 - 30 Oct 16
- ”Future Landscapes” exhibition, Ca’ Zanardi, Venice, Italy, 6 Oct - 27 Nov 16
- ”Frida Kahlo – Lust for Life” exhibition, Menier Gallery, London, 4 – 31 Aug 16
PUBLICATIONS
- Featured article on Exquisite Arts Magazine, March 2018
Still Point Art Quarterly, Summer 2017
- Interview on Artsy Shark, May 17
- Artist in the Spotlight at the Flux Exhibition on The Gallery Guide, May 17
- ArtWeek, May 17
- Artsy, May 17
- Interview on ItsLiquid, May 17
- Artwork selected as Header Image for Curator Space (”Materia 1, 2, 3” - coming soon)
- Art International Contemporary Magazine, January/February 17
- Interview in Art Reveal Magazine, issue 23, Dec 16
- Interview in Exquisite Arts Magazine, issue 3, Nov 2016