What techniques do you use?
I draw in pencil on paper and gild the background with gold leaf. Gilding is a restoration technique I’ve stolen from my mother’s world: when I first used it to enrich my drawings, I knew at once it was a perfect match for simple graphite. Together, grey and gold became my signature.
Why do you depict pedestals?
There were many in my mother’s workshop, and I’ve always been fascinated by their double function of highlighting and isolating what they support. By placing hens and other animals on pedestals, I can see and represent them differently, from a new and uncommon point of view.
© Giorgio Schirato
What do you enjoy most about your craft?
Drawing eyes. It’s also the most difficult and delicate moment, because eyes are the mirror of the soul: that’s why I always take my time to delineate them in detail. Afterwards, the bulk is done and I’m no longer alone: my subject is finally out of my head, able to communicate and keep me company.
Is there a place that inspires you?
Both my hometown Trieste, where I share my mother’s atelier, and Venice, where I live and plan to open a workshop. The first is a border city, where people search for themselves like I do in my drawings. The second is the biggest and most beautiful archive of settings and decorations, which are essential to my art.