PORTRAIT
Portrait Series - Capturing Fragility and Resilience
The Portraits series reflects my lifelong fascination with capturing the essence of dolls, girls, and young women. Inspired by a visit to a doll hospital in Napoli, where antique dolls—some lost during wars or abandoned—are lovingly restored, this series delves into themes of belonging, fragility, and resilience.
These uncanny yet intimate figures mirror the complexities of vulnerability and strength, offering a profound intersection of human emotion. Through these portraits, and later those of young women, I explore how we navigate the delicate balance between weakness and inner power.
This series conveys a message of growth, identity, and the courage to embrace both strength and vulnerability—lessons I deeply wish to pass on to my daughters. Each piece celebrates this delicate yet powerful journey of transformation and resilience.
Title: First Painting from the Doll House
Size: 30x40 cm
Medium: Oil on Canvas
This work is the first in a series inspired by a visit to a doll hospital in Napoli. The antique dolls, once lost or abandoned, have been lovingly restored to their former glory. The face of the doll in this piece is a reflection of fragility and innocence, captured in intimate detail. Its gaze invites a sense of vulnerability yet, simultaneously, evokes a profound strength that is central to the themes of the series. The delicate strokes and soft color palette symbolize the delicate balance between beauty, fragility, and strength.
Title: Blindness
Size: 30x40 cm
Medium: oil on canvas
In this work, I explore themes of perception and restriction, symbolized by the bold red line cutting across the figure's eyes. This red line serves as a metaphor for the blind spots in our own perception—moments when we are prevented from seeing clearly or understanding fully. The figure’s expression, though marked with vulnerability, conveys resilience and quiet strength, while the blurred background suggests a sense of confusion or a lack of clarity. The delicate watercolor technique captures the fine balance between fragility and the power of overcoming obstacles, portraying a layered sense of human complexity.
Title: Untitled
Medium: Watercolor on Paper
Size: 20 x 20 cm
Description:
This watercolor piece delves into themes of innocence and mystery, capturing the delicate features of a young girl with haunting clarity. The soft blending of colors creates an ethereal atmosphere, drawing the viewer into the girl's gaze. The subtle imperfections in the brushwork, like the smudges and speckles, enhance the emotional intensity, evoking a sense of fragility and vulnerability. This piece embodies the fleeting nature of time and the unspoken stories held within the eyes, inviting the viewer to interpret the story behind the face. Displayed at the Mall Gallery in London, it invites a closer connection with the delicate and profound moments that define youth and humanity.
Title: "Silent Gaze"
Medium: Watercolor on Paper
Size: 20 x 20 cm
Description:
"Silent Gaze" captures a poignant moment of introspection, portraying a young girl with a tear-shaped heart marking her face. The soft blending of colors and the subtle imperfections in the brushwork evoke a sense of vulnerability and fragility. This piece invites viewers to reflect on the unspoken stories and emotions conveyed through a simple yet profound expression. The artwork was exhibited at the Mall Gallery in London, offering a glimpse into the delicate and profound moments that define youth and humanity.
Note: The title "Silent Gaze" has been chosen to encapsulate the essence of the piece, emphasizing the depth and emotion conveyed through the subject's expression.
Title: A girl
Medium: Watercolor on Paper
Size: 20 x 20 cm
Exhibitions:
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Modern Museum, Madrid
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Modern Museum, Barcelona
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Green & Stone Gallery, London
Description:
This evocative watercolor portrait presents a young girl, seemingly lost in contemplation, her expression marked by a tear-like heart on her face. The delicate strokes of the painting capture not only the girl's innocence but also her deep internal world. The muted palette of the piece enhances the sense of melancholy, while the sharp contrast of the painted marks on her face tells a story of emotional complexity. The piece's appearance in prestigious venues like Modern Museum in Madrid and Barcelona, as well as Green & Stone Gallery in London, underscores its universal resonance and the power of vulnerability through art. It reflects themes of vulnerability, identity, and emotional depth, offering a glimpse into the struggle between childhood innocence and the weight of unspoken emotions.
title: Rising Hope
Size: 20X20 cm
Medium: Watercolor on Paper
This artwork, titled Rising Hope, captures the delicate strength and resilience of the human spirit. Through the gaze of a young girl, this piece explores the profound search for light during the darkest moments. The soft expression, paired with the gentle colors, reflects a quiet yet intense yearning for transformation and renewal. The blending of light and shadow emphasizes the coexistence of fragility and strength—often most evident in our moments of vulnerability.
"Rising Hope" is an ode to the unspoken power of faith and the quiet promise of growth, embodying the idea that, despite life's challenges, hope will always rise again.
Title: Fragmented Identity
Watercolor on paper | 20X20 cm
2025
"Fragmented Identity" explores the delicate interplay between self-perception and external influences. The distorted face and surreal blend of colors reflect the way identities often feel fractured, especially in the face of societal expectations. The burst of vivid red and the dark tones convey a sense of inner turmoil, yet the subject's clear, blue eyes offer a glimpse of clarity and depth amidst the chaos. This piece resonates with the vulnerability and strength found in embracing one's complexity and imperfections.
Title: Hiding From the World
Oil on canvas | 80X120 cm
2025
"Hiding From the World" captures the feeling of overwhelming vulnerability and the urge to shut out the harsh realities of life. The subject, with hands pressed firmly against her face, conveys a powerful sense of self-isolation, as though the weight of the world is too much to bear. The vibrant red nails stand in stark contrast to the muted tones of the background, hinting at a hidden strength beneath the surface. This painting reflects a deeply human moment—when we feel compelled to retreat from the world and hide from the demands placed upon us. Yet, there is an underlying quiet defiance, a gesture of holding on in the face of emotional turmoil.
Title: Fragmented Reality
Oil on canvas | 45X60 cm
2025
"Fragmented Reality" explores the delicate and often painful intersection of identity and perception. The subject’s profile is marked by a bold, disruptive stroke of red, symbolizing emotional distress and the rupture of self-perception. The dark tones surrounding the figure amplify the contrast, giving the piece a sense of introspection and turmoil. Yet, in the midst of the chaos, the stillness of the figure offers a quiet strength—an unwavering stance in the face of personal fracture. This work speaks to the struggle of reconciling the parts of ourselves that feel broken with the parts that remain whole.
Fragile Horizons
Watercolor on paper | 20X20 cm
2025
"Fragile Horizons" encapsulates the delicate interplay between light and shadow, capturing a moment of vulnerability and reflection. The misty atmosphere surrounding the subject seems to blend the edges of reality, leaving the figure suspended in a world of uncertainty. The figure’s piercing gaze, surrounded by swirling, ethereal forms, evokes a sense of searching, as if reaching toward clarity yet remaining surrounded by a cloud of confusion. The soft, dream-like quality of the work contrasts with the sharpness of the figure's expression, embodying the tension between emotional fragility and inner strength.
Silent Dissolution
Oil on canvas | 45X60 cm
2025
"Silent Dissolution" portrays a figure on the cusp of emotional disintegration, captured in stillness yet brimming with intense undercurrents. The artist uses soft, muted tones to envelop the subject in a state of suspension, while the bold brushstrokes across the top of the figure's head suggest the dissolution of clarity and identity. The figure’s gaze remains neutral, the calm surface contrasting with the turbulence implied by the fragmented hairstyle. This piece speaks to the internal conflict between the desire for personal expression and the forces that try to silence or distort it. It echoes the fragility of self and the struggle to maintain integrity when external pressures threaten to obscure one’s true essence.
Fragmented Innocence
Watercolor on paper | 20X20 cm
2025
"Fragmented Innocence" is an evocative representation of duality within childhood and identity. The soft, blurred edges of the girl's face reflect an ethereal vulnerability, while the sharp contrast of the dark shadow across her features hints at the forces of introspection and external influence. The subtle, yet powerful play of light and shadow, combined with delicate color gradients, creates a sense of transformation—suggesting an emotional and psychological journey. This painting explores the intersection of innocence and experience, where the clarity of the self becomes clouded by time, change, and societal expectations.
Shifting Perceptions
Oil on canvas | 45X60 cm
2025
"Shifting Perceptions" is an exploration of identity and perception, captured through an abstract yet intimate portrayal of a figure in motion. The fragmented, red tones across the face and the blurred background evoke a sense of displacement and confusion, while the solid black of the figure contrasts sharply with the chaotic lines of the background. This interaction between figure and space speaks to the emotional journey of self-discovery, as well as the external forces that shape and challenge one's personal reality.
The vibrant colors and dynamic composition enhance the underlying tension, inviting viewers to reflect on the ambiguity of identity and the complexity of the human experience.
Shifting Realities
Oil on canvas | 45X60 cm
2025
This piece explores the emotional and psychological tension between self-perception and external expectations. "Shifting Realities" presents a fragmented profile, where the figure’s facial features melt into dissonant colors, symbolizing the blur between identity and societal pressures. The use of bold red and yellow tones adds to the intensity of the piece, suggesting both conflict and resilience. The sharp line that separates the face from the rest of the body captures the complexity of inner division and the struggle for self-definition.
Through this composition, the artwork delves into the duality of the human condition—caught between the need for belonging and the pursuit of individuality. The subject’s eyes, partially obscured, evoke a sense of yearning for clarity in a world of ever-shifting realities.
This piece calls into question the forces that shape our identity and the powerful intersection of the inner self with external perceptions.