What happens when an artist has a message so deeply profound that it cannot be contained on one canvas? The story must be continued on all future canvasses where the piece you see in front of you is more than just the creative expression of the artist's mind now, it's everything up to that point. It's everything from the start of civilization, interpreted through the eyes of one man, one spiritual being, one artist, at the moment the paint hits the platform. This one painting is all of the past paintings plus more.
In my art, studying people and writing about them, sometimes the lessons learned are so thoughtful, intense, and reflective, that they cannot be kept to one canvas. The lessons must spill over to the next. There must be an encore. Such is the case of my evolving interview and friendship with the renowned artist, Giovanni DeCunto. I hope you enjoy my new and second canvas.... this is just a small pint-sized bit of what I couldn't contain in my first canvas of Giovanni DeCunto. This is his encore. Let's see if this canvas is enough to hold him...doubtful.
Disturb People: Giovanni says that if you have an intense desire to make a difference in the world and a manic longing to grow into the most evolved version of yourself, you must disturb people. He says that everyone is so caught up in their own little world that it's impossible to impact anyone unless you disturb them. Giovanni says that when you disturb someone, you stop them in their tracks, you force them to think outside of themselves. You move that person forward in their personal evolution when you can get them to stop and think for even just a moment. Giovanni says that this is the reason he works societal issues like Ebola, war, God, death, and humanity into his art. He says that art cannot speak to you until it disturbs you enough to get your attention and that this is the way of life. If you want to make a difference, stop trying to make people comfortable because comfort is death and disruption breeds life.
Be A Free Thinker: Giovanni is one of the deepest thinkers I've ever experienced. He is well educated on world issues, politics, arts, sciences, humanity, and civilization. He could undoubtedly hold his own in a conversation with world leaders, Nobel Laureates, and religious zealots. I asked him how much time he spends reading, to which he responded, "almost none." Giovanni says that he works diligently to maintain free thought. He says that all forms of media including books and television, are nothing more than the regurgitated opinions of others. He says that he doesn't read or watch television to gain an understanding of the world, but rather he absorbs his surroundings. He absorbs people like he absorbs the beauty of a ray of sunlight as it hits the cobblestone outside his North End studio. He also absorbs history, politics, and religion by studying art. Giovanni says that there's a lifetime of education all around us if we simply sit back and absorb. Everything he absorbs eventually comes out on canvas. People and art are all a cumulative representation of the entire history of civilization and thus represented in his paintings.
We are All Tenants: Giovanni finds humor in humanity's obsession with ownership. Humans think they own land, businesses, things, and ideas. He says that the reality of life is that we are all tenants. He says that when people buy his paintings, it's not theirs forever, because they are not forever. They are renting the beauty he has created through his art for their temporary time on earth. He says that humans are very egocentric in their belief that it is possible to own anything at all. He says that once anything is put out to the universe; a word, an idea, or a painting, it now belongs to the universe, for the use and enjoyment of all. Nothing can be owned.
You Are A Reflection of Those You Fight: Giovanni says that the easiest way to end all wars is for us to realize that we are a reflection of the people we are fighting. When we fight with anyone, we are really fighting a reflection of ourselves. We are really fighting ourselves. When you feel hate for someone else, this is a reflection of what you hate about yourself. When you fight other nations for being controlled by their religion, you are really saying that you hate yourself for being controlled by yours. Every fight in the history of civilization is not a fight with others, but rather an internal struggle with our own humanity. Wars are ended by first loving ourselves because when we love ourselves there's nobody left to fight with.
Outrage: You cannot do anything productive without being mad. Giovanni says that the undertone of all of his art is anger. He says that it is outrage and anger that power movement towards a better humanity. He says that the purpose of rage and resentment is to foster change. If the world were perfect, there would only be love. The world is imperfect, change is necessary, and this is only possible when people get angry enough to make their own statement. Giovanni says that both love and hate play significant roles in our culture and in civilization. When you give love, then people give back the best of themselves. When you get angry, you get people to notice, listen, and even occasionally to foster change.
Giovanni DeCunto, a man who must be encored, because sometimes just one canvas is not enough.
To inquire about DeCunto's work visit www.GiovanniDeCunto.com.