martedì 26 febbraio 2019

Never left the Soup again


So it is a while I am thinking I have to do this... But it looks so complicate that I even don't know from where to start. To make it short I like to live the present, fully, without thinking too much about past time and tring to do not think too much also about the future. In this case it will be about the present but with some exceptions. I would like to write the story of my grandfather and I would like it written for my child, as it is a story that must be remembered. My grandfather when was 18 was sent as a soldier into the 2nd world war to conquest Serbia. He was a balilla under Mussolini and he had to obey whatever was ordered. So he was trained as a machine gunner when the war happened he had to leave everything and he was so young though. During the Serbia' campaign there were many complications for him as they were in the middle of a guerriglia. Few time after they were in Serbia  it happened the armistice and  he was captured as a political prisoner by the Germans. Once in Dakau he told me that they were asked to sign and if they wouldn't accept the forced labour into the mine they were shooted. He survived and during the prisons' time he even learned to speak German. So well that a certain point Germans were going to kill him as they believed he wasn't italian but a german betrayal. Only his friend, an Italian guy son of a very important family, prisoner too, could save him with his prompt action. Telling he teached him German in night time. I still remember so well my grandfather Vittorio telling me that while he was a prisoner he could eat only sometimes few potatoes peels, everything was so dramatic. With such cold winter and no shoes the mine labour was going to make him loose his feet. They became black, a German doctor saved them by pulling off all the flesh of his feet. Because of this he was sent to another forced camp, no more mine but vegetable garden into a greenhouse for some German chief. Thanks to England and USA bombing, after a while under the earth he realized he was alive, barely he could breath and he escaped. With some other prisoner survived they moved toward Hungary . Tring to survive the were again captured by the Cosacchi that left them without clothes and shoes. He was kind of 30 kilos weight when with his fellows they met Russians, that fed them to survive. He still had his clock and when a soldier tried to steel it, his chief shooted thieve in the head, in front of my grandfather who said it didn't matter as much though. The Russian General said no place for thieves. With the Russian army my grandfather reached Berlin and then he could come back home to my grandmother that patiently was waiting for him all this time. At the beginning she received his letters, when he was prisoner they were all black, all censored, but at least she knew he was alive . Then for a while with no letters it was much more difficult for her to believe he could make back home. My grandfather died at the age of 72, he loved the nature, he received even a medal from the army and he loved cats and all animals. Of course he loved his children and his nephews.  I bring his surname. He was from Venice. He was very lucky and he had to fight for his life. Every time we were at dinner together and I didn't want to eat the soup he told me the story of the potatoes peels. The soup never left again.
To my grandfather to my grandmother that are watching by the sky. 
To my baby and my nephew and all the new generations that could remember this story as a treasure.

Choupette and Karl Lagerfeld

Choupette was Karl Lagerfeld's beloved cat. Now is even a billionaire cat. But a cat once has something to eat and a cozy and warm place for a nap is kind of good except for the missing of his beloved.. Who says cats have no feelings says this because they never had a cat.. By the way Karl Lagerfeld was a true genius, first time I met I was 18, when I started working as a Model for Fendi. He was the art director of the Maison. His collections were incredible, I was so lucky to wear those unbelievable creations. But after couple years I decided to leave the fashion career for following my studies in economics, fashion world was very exciting but very icy too for a teen Ager. Several years I was already a well known painter, thanks also to David LaChapelle, and I met Karl again in New York. It was a party for the fashion week and he remembered me.'' You did a Long way from Roma darling'' he said. He was a genius and an artist, I could feel his big feeling of loneliness even if he was in crowd. This why how I truly understand his big love for Choupette

Believe or not my cat showed me this..

This Is a funny and incredible story.. Few years ago I had a dream, it was so true that when I wake I thought it was real. Either in reality either in the dream I was feeling kind of depressed and without energy. So there was my lovely cat that was walking in front of me to show me a place. And he brought me into this place below, a sunny, icy, sparkling fresh view. When I wake up I was renewed with strenght and joy just to think about this pure amazing place.

giovedì 21 febbraio 2019

Over the top / my story

As I didn't know from where to start. I decided to begin with the belly. Kind of the center of whole. Why I paint, why I write, why I am into this need of creation and comunication. Do you imagine? I guess it is quite difficult. Well for me when I was around 25 years old, with an economic graduation in my pocket and a job as accountant it happened something very strong, unbelievable even to me. I had That Moment! At that time I was very precise, I used to organize and plan everything. I had already a big passion for art, my love for painting grew up with me since I was a little baby, but It wasn't the main thing. I liked to read, I liked many things at that time I still felt I had to discover the world. Even I was already a world traveller. As you probably know before the graduation I had many experience in fashion world, I walked with Naomi Campbell and Claudia Schiffer as a model and before I took part of international beauty contest and I worked even in tv shows. So I had many kinds of friends. Real friends from school, real as those were real people simple with few masks as it can happens in fashion or television world, but I had good friends also there. One of this was an author of a tv show that at that time was editing his first book. So while he was doing his editing for the first big editor in his life he asked me to read his book just to let him know my thoughts about. This book was already called 'tre metri sopra il cielo' it was a story about teenager's love affair, it was well written and very passionate. So it happened that after a while it was published and it was available in the bookshop. It was February, I still remember, my friend was very happy about and I was very happy too as it was his dream coming true to be a writer. So even I already had red that book I decided to get a real copy for me and I went to purchase it at the bookshop 'la feltrinelli' that was in Roma at piazza Cola di Rienzo. I went there with my car and I was lucky enough to find a parking close by. I had just to cross via MarcoAntonio Colonna to reach the bookshop. I was a rainy day, actually it rained all day but when I get out of my car the rain stopped, so I didn't even pickup the umbrella. In order to cross via Colonna there was a walking light. When I arrived there I was going to cross the street, there were no cars passing by, but when I realized the walking light was red for me I stepped back waiting for the green. I remember that close to me , waiting for the green, there was a guy dressed with a beige sweather that was listening music from a walkman, kind of strange as it was already the time for CD players. He didn't pay attention to me at all, he was totally focused on his walkman.That I noticed too as it was already the time for cd instead of music cassettes.  So finally the light was green and I started crossing via Colonna watching the bookshop in front of me. When I was kind of four steps ahead I heard somebody yelling ' stop!!! Be carefull! / exactly 'ferma! Attenta!!' I turned my face to the left and there was a yellow cab arriving at high speed right toward me. It was kind of a second and I felt I was away. I was very light in a place full of light and I started feeling the love and seeing scenes of my life with my beloved, my mother, my father, my sister, my boyfriend, that even he was an ex boyfriend at that time, the long love story we lived ended few months before but evidently he was still in my heart. Time was elapsed. I could feel intensely all those moments with them. Suddenly I realized something incredible: I was going die! Oh yes, that was. And I was feeling very good though, very light, kind of fling in a very bright place but Immediately my thought went straight to my mother! Holy holy holy I thought if was died that pain would have been so big for her that it would have killed her too. I felt so much pain then, huge pain, in my heart for the struggle I would have gave to her and to my family that in a second, like a cold quick shower from high I was sent back into my body! Kind of a splash into a stone, actually trough my head. My body was petrified! Friezed!I couldn't move even a little finger. Than I beated my eyes I could see the face of the taxi driver. His car was so close to me that just a sword would have passed by. His face was like a mask of fear, pale, big eyes , mouth open. I was shocked and him too. I was still in the middle of the street and so Friezed. Than someone touched my arm and kindly helped me to reach the other side of the street. I don't remember who was, maybe the guy with the walkman, but as I crossed the street with my legs still trilling he disappeared and I called my mum with my phone in my bag, not the I phone, just a simple one. I told her' I love you mum, I think I was going to die but now everything is fine, you saved me, I love you'. She was at work, so she gave me attention, but not that much,she said ' yes, yes, we are fine too' only at home I would have explained all. Than I realized everything was like before, people, cars were everything in the right place. Even the bookshop was where it had to be. But I didn't realize that something happened. It was about me, I wasn't the same of before. I still went to purchase that book, the effect was not that happy as I imagined. It wasn't important at all, it was me, all me, my mind, my body so shocked from bones to brain, my values my beliefs my main things! Everything changed. Actually everything took its own right place. No dress, no diamond, no car has a minimum value next to real love. When I went home and I told the whole story to my family I told that the biggest pain was not the feeling of the lost of them, there were no lost up there everything was light and connected. The biggest sadness I felt was the pain I would have gave to them with my death. So please if you have any dear that passed away think about them with joy because this is the biggest gift you can give them. Your beloved want you to feel happy and joyfull, they are always somehow connected and your pain, even for their lost, doesn't make them happy. When I will be brave enough I will tell you more about this, of course it is one hundred pour cent true

martedì 19 febbraio 2019

Impetuous Strawberries fields for ever

Spring is coming and I already smell strawberries in the air. So I decided to paint those impetuous strawberries, fresh and crunchy. This watercolour has been closed to make this sweatshirt. I mean would you wear a strawberry' field? Do you remember The song " Strawberry fields for ever " From Beatles?  I always liked that song and I actually I don't even know if they used the meaning of strawberry fields for something else. I just like strawberries. Their smell, their shape, their color and their flavour. I like also their leaves and their little white and yellow flower. so if you feeling too this mood following you can find the link 


La primavera e' in arrivo e gia respiro profumo di fragole nell'aria. Così' ho deciso di dipingere queste fragolette impetuose, fresche e croccanti. Questo acquerello e' stato scelto per farne una felpa. Avete mai ascoltato la canzone dei Beatles "starebbero fields for ever"? A me e' sempre piaciuta quella canzone e tecnicamente neanche so se abbiano usato qualche doppio senso. A me sta già bene il semplice senso delle fragole, mi piacciono, mi piace il loro profumo, la forma, il colore e il sapore . Mi piacciono anche le loro foglie e quei piccoli fiorellini gialli bianchi. Quindi se vi sentite anche voi di questo mood di seguito trovate il link

giovedì 14 febbraio 2019

My watercolours and ShopVida

https://shopvida.com/collections/flavia-mantovan?rfsn=2300881.75d137&utm_source=refersion&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=2300881.75d137
Few days ago an amazing company, from San Francisco, USA, asked me to use my drawing for their bags, scarfs, t-shirts, ties and much more .  Of course I accepted! ShopVida is ecofriendly and has many attentions also about the social profile of the company.  I love to see my art as a dressing piece an I love people can feel to be an art piece somehow wearing my prints!My paintings reached prices that not everybody can effort so This is why I also decided to keep prices for those items  at Shop Vida as low as possible so everybody can effort to wear it. Give a look to the link above and let me know wht you think about :)

Qualche giorno fa una meravigliosa azienda americana, di San Francisco (USA) mi ha chiesto di utilizzare i miei dipinti per le stampe delle loro borse, sciarpe, t-shirts, cravatte e molto altro. ovviamente ho accettato! ShopVida e' una azienda ecofriendly e molto attenta anche al profilo sociale. Adoro vedere la mia arte come un'opera da indossare  e adoro che le persone indossando le mie stampe possano sentirsi in qualche modo  un'opera d'arte.  I miei dipinti hanno raggiunto prezzi che non tutti possono permettersi e proprio per questo in accordo con Shop Vida ho deciso di mantenere i prezzi dei miei articoli stampati più bassi possibile, così che tutti possano permettersi di acquistare ciò che più gli piace. Date uno sguardo al link di sopra e fatemi sapere che ne pensate.