The Texture of Memory
Born in Acerra, Italy, in 1992, Giovanni Guida grew up in Cesa, within the province of Caserta. His path led him from the "Luca Giordano" art high school in Aversa to the Academy of Fine Arts in Naples, where he completed both his bachelor's and master's degrees in painting. Before establishing his own practice, he spent time teaching painting and art history in Rome. His work often feels like an excavation, a process of uncovering what lies beneath the surface of the canvas.
His method relies heavily on grattage and frottage. He does not simply apply paint; he scrapes, tears, and layers it. Using tools like scalpels, steel brushes, small metal blocks, sponges, and even his own hands, he works through successive layers of wet paint. He often seals these layers with specific resins to keep the colors from fading. This physical struggle with the medium allows him to reach a deeper level of pigment, seeking a primordial color that resurfaces through the scratches and marks left behind.
Light and Layering
The palette he favors is specific and deep. There is a heavy presence of lapis lazuli blue, alongside silver and gold. These colors emerge from the textures he creates through raspado and other scraping techniques. His work often moves away from strict figuration toward more ambiguous, natural forms. In pieces like Apotheosis, the shapes become less defined, leaning into the subconscious and the dreamlike.
His interests often touch upon the intersection of the sacred and the psychological. He has explored Christian iconography, notably through his 2015 book Cesarius Diaconus, which focused on San Cesario de Terracina. The icon of this martyr has traveled far beyond Italy, appearing in various museums and cathedrals, including the Kunstgewerbemuseum in Berlin, the Museu Frederic Marès in Barcelona, and the Cathedral of Manila. This connection to the spiritual is balanced by an interest in the tension between rationality and fantasy.
A Search for Essence
Guida’s development shows a shift from the figurative toward the abstract and the transcendental. His paintings often deal with themes of immanence and the subconscious. Some of his notable works include:
- Apotheosis (2014)
- Apotheosis of Dante Alighieri in Florence: Amor che move il sole e l’altre stelle (2020)
- Etherea (2021)
- Take Me to Church (2022)
- God fights the Coronavirus (And you'll be cured of all diseases.. and I'll take care of you)
His process is a continuous investigation of light and color. By scratching through the "skin" of the paint, he attempts to find the essence of the subject, treating the canvas as a site of constant discovery. The resulting surfaces are not smooth; they are scarred, layered, and deeply tactile.
