Towards East is a travelling exhibition of paintings that tells the story of my solo journey to Asia without flying. The goal was not the destination but the direction, which is the fascinating journey towards the East. The journey lasted about two years, from March 2018 until January 2020, and I visited fifteen countries: Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, China, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, India, Nepal, Pakistan. 

I decided to undertake the journey by land to better appreciate the cultural differences and the peculiar landscapes that exist between my place of origin, southern Italy, and what lies to the east. I was, and still am, looking for places where the traditions of community life and the relationship to and respect of nature still exists, seeking places that are authentic and not artificial for commercial or touristic purposes. During my trip I was able to approach local people seeking hospitality in their homes in order to become part of their daily lives, savoring their rhythms of life and relationships. This time spent living together lasted only a few days but it was very fertile ground for the exchange of visions, emotions, knowledge, and culinary recipes that enriched me as I never could have wished for. A few months into the trip, I expanded this exchange by creating portraits of the people who offered me hospitality or from whom I was particularly impressed. Dedicating myself to the study of their facial lines allowed me to know them much more deeply than I could ever do with words. This tool became helpful in reaching across difficult language barriers, especially with women, who usually spoke less English than men. The gift of my portraits brought great joy and pride for those who received them, which in turn motivated me even more to continue making them and gifting them along my journey. 

Thanks to being immersed in daily life in the east, I now carry this experience of bridging these two geographical-cultural hemispheres, as well as the two cerebral hemispheres: the East and the West meet, mix and complement each other inside me, through the harmonious dance between intuition and reason. The encounter with the other is a precious gift. It’s a gift that has offered me the opportunity to expand my perspective, learning to recognize and use more fluidly the expressive and adaptive capacities of my body, my mind and my heart. Towards East is a travelling exhibition: my journey carries on in order to continue receiving gifts through those I encounter, and cultivating the virtuous artistic process that was spontaneously generated in me through interactions and energy received from the people and places that I came across in Asia. 

My exhibition is entirely dedicated to Asia, to its extraordinary diversity and very rich culture, to the infinite generosity and hospitality of its people who have allowed me to feel at home even hundreds of kilometers away from home. My paintings are the result of a heartfelt gratitude and pay homage to the people and places that have shaped the person who I am now.