Federica Crestani

Her subjects are not Horses, but Emotions. They take the shape of the horse because they are strong, indomitable, and instinctive. These are the thoughts of Federica Crestani, a Venetian artist from Soave, a lovely town located in one of the most beautiful areas surrounding Verona, between centuries-old vineyards and green hills as far as the eye can see. Federica is officially an architect, but in her heart, her emotions, and everyday life she is, first and foremost, a contemporary artist who is very well-known in the equestrian field for her stunning works, which are characterized by a personal reinterpretation of German Romanticism in oil painting combined with wire sculpture. 1. Hi Federica. Welcome on board! Just to set the scene with our readers, can you please give us some background to you, your family, and your academic record? 1. Although art has become one of my professional channels, I am a self-taught artist. After high school, I graduated in architecture and I specialized in landscape architecture in the city of Venice. I also continue to work as an architect. It is a job that I like very much. I love many things, and nowadays it is just no possible to confine myself to a single role. My genetic heritage has played a fundamental role in all that: my father founded our Real Estate, Consulting, and Interior Design family business, so my technical part comes right from him. My mother is a Psychotherapist who, among other things, follows several projects of rehabilitative art therapy, hence my vocation to the world of art intended as a cathartic tool. I have inherited the love for horses from my paternal uncle. 2. Have you always dreamt about becoming an artist or did you have other ambitions as a child? 2. I have been painting horses since I was a child, and, of course, I dreamt of being an artist. However, I also wanted to be an astronaut, an archaeologist, and an architect. In short, it would take me two or three lives to do everything! But yes, I admit that what I'm doing now it's one of my secret dreams. I am happy I have followed this path through a channel that allows me to have a 360 degree-view. 3. Federica, you come from an ancient land exuding history, surrounded by vineyards and long-lasting wine tradition. What's your relationship with the territory? Do you enjoy living there or are you more of a traveller person? 3. I love traveling but, I have very little time to do it. Getting in touch with different places, cultures, and people is quite an enriching experience, and it allows you to have a multi-perspective vision. Furthermore, every new contact becomes a vital source of artistic inspiration. But, preserving my roots, it's what matters to me. I have a strong relationship with my land, and the idea of doing something that may bring good things to my territory it's something that has always been there in my mind. And that's what I'm trying to do now with my job. 4. Where do you find the inspiration for your artworks? Inside you or do you feel you need to get inspired by what is around you? 4. I have to use a metaphor to answer this question. Let's imagine representing the human body through a representation on a white canvas that we try to keep intact with more or less effort to have full control of it. At some point, we feel something inside us that we can no longer manage. We perceive a visceral emotion that we are unable to keep underneath our beautiful white surface. At that point, this reaps open because emotions have to come out, and this is when the "Sturm und Drang" that stirs in us must manifest itself in some form. Mine has taken the shape of a horse. Why the horse? We are dealing with an animal that thrives on complementary contrasts and whose emotional balance is always changing. After all, what are our emotions? When people started asking for my "Emotional self-portraits" through the horses, I began looking at the whole world through the equestrian allegory. Today, I can also paint the 'soul' of people in the way I perceive it, of course. My clients tell me their stories. I feel very honoured by what they share with me. They also decide the level of depth I can get from their accounts, and they know that their deepest emotions will remain only between us, imprinted in that gesture or in that colour. So, I tell the life of the people through my horses. Since I paint emotions, the work can only be said completed if it has an emotional impact on the subject portrayed. My horses come into shape straight from the emotions of the people I meet, so it is an inspiration that continues to grow by itself. 5. Federica, tell us a little about the "Art & Cavallo" exhibition. How and when did your cooperation with FieraCavalli Verona begin? 5. I first exhibited my artworks at the Jumping event in Fieracavalli 2018, with a small solo show. Afterward, I was contacted by the team of the Exhibition. They proposed me to use my paintings for the 2019 advertising campaign with a strong desire to give an ethical cut to the message to deliver. I was also required to design a new format for a collective equestrian art salon composed of various artists. This is how Art & Cavallo came to life as the first artistic exhibition space entirely devoted to the Horse in Fieracavalli Verona. It was a great success. I got soon contacted for Fieracavalli 2020. Since then, the collaboration has started on several levels. A process of contamination through art began alongside new laboratories, new projects and new images for the event. Today, Art & Cavallo keeps growing. We are working with professionals and companies to ensure that the initiative is not just an exhibition for its own sake. But, it is an ever-expanding cultural network. One of the many objectives is to make an international art competition in the framework of the salon. That is quite a long way ahead, but all the people involved in this project show great enthusiasm. 6. Our Magazine is one of the largest specialist publications in the industry of the Arabian Horse. Have you ever met one? What is your approach to horses in general? Why is the horse such a central theme in your artworks? 6. Yes, of course! The Arabian horse in motion is something that can only be truly understood by seeing him live, which is why the image that associates him with the personification of the wind fits perfectly. My approach to the horse in general? I decided to take riding lessons a few months ago also to overcome my fear of them. I have always had some sort of reverence for horses, they look so majestic to my eyes. By working and interacting with these beautiful animals since the start of my collaboration with Fieracavalli, I have taken my step forward to experiencing the emotional binomial but not only from the ground. The horse with his great sensitivity represents human emotion to perfection. This is why in the A.I.A. (animal-assisted interventions), horses are the most suited animals for people who experience problems of various kinds. 7. Federica, your technique involves oil painting in combination with wire sculpture. Why did you choose this specific mixed technique? 7. In reality, it is a technique resulting from continuous experimentation. I started with only oil painting, but, the two dimensions of the canvas, were not enough, so I introduced the first tears to break down the wild spirit of the horse. With time, those protrusions took the shape of the essence that cannot be contained in two dimensions but needs three dimensions. It was a gradual step forward. The first paintings had only the manes that came out, then I started with the legs, then with the heads up to even building real sculptures that come out of the paintings. I call them The Released Souls. The black iron wire represents the sign of the initial pencil sketch, essential and pure. I didn't want to choose between sculpture and painting. I didn't want any borders. 8. Which one is your favourite piece? 8. There are two: "Il Salto di Bucefalo" a triptych of 8 meters that later became the advertising campaign of Art & Cavallo, and "La Corsa" for the Jumping advertising campaign 2019-2020. The first piece symbolizes what I really mean by emotions that come out of the canvas, and it wants to be a tribute to all the artists. The second represents a turning point in my life. It is a self-portrait. 10. What effect do you think the Internet will have on art in the future? Has it affected yours? 10. I am not so keen on social media, quite the contrary. I think they are a mystifying reality too much. However, these can be useful tools from a professional point of view. Today, artists are allowed to reach audiences and places they previously had no way of reaching out. Furthermore, art bears the social responsibility for spreading an ethical message among people. I hope that the use of the Internet will take a smarter direction in this sense. 11. What is the best way for a potential client to reach you? 11. As mentioned earlier, many clients get in touch with me via Instagram, Facebook, and email. Of course, there is the exhibition space with the artworks of the Fieracavalli campaigns that people can see in our studio - atelier. 12. Federica, what are your hopes and dreams or future goals? Where do you see yourself in the next five years? 12. For the next five years, I want to continue devoting my life to do good things through my work. I hope our studio will have the Vision to blend art and architecture into cultural projects set on the agenda. Thank you very much, Federica. The Artworld is anxiously awaiting your future creations. It was a pleasure speaking