Manuel Felisi: the style of an artist
The magical vitality, a sense of belonging. The sign of time, as a vital trace, where memory is never nostalgia, but root. Manuel Felisi's artistic vision is also the vision of his ethics, an indissoluble union for this 47-year-old artist, faithful to his soul and his vocation. A man who embodies the idea of Fortela with practical nonchalance.
Felisi is an artist tout-court, a "multidisciplinary" by vocation, suspended between painting, photography, installations (his "piano under water" for Vinicio Capossela in the Sinfonia Numero performance is poetic)
An identity that could not live without community, a sweetness that is deep and eternal, like the embrace of a progenitor. An art that has the strength of memory. Which heartens rather than shocks, and welcomes rather than rejects.
Contrary to the ambitions of consumerism, even the style of his way of living and dressing is in tune with his ethics. Manuel is a man of "armor", as he himself defines it: he loves a comfortable, agile, representative look. May it be its protection and its icon, may it also be stained with color and creativity, may it bring it into the world with confidence. And those who know the flair of each Fortela garment will have already understood the profound connection between this artist and the brand.
We photographed him wearing the spring collection, interviewing him in his new Milanese studio.
To admire his latest works, Manuel Felisi will be on display at the Carlo Bilotti Museum, in Villa Borghese, Rome. On display are 80 paintings of animals on wood, which make up the “Uno a Uno” series.
The exhibition is organized by the Russo Gallery. In collaboration with the Bioparco Foundation of Rome. Edited by Gabriele Simongini. Until April 22nd .
Where we are?
“At the end of Viale Padova, Milan. Where I recently moved. Where there is still a real neighborhood fabric, and where you encounter people's smiles: it's a beautiful reality, it's still a piece of Milan as I remembered it. I recently moved from via Ventura, to Lambrate. After Massimo de Carlo also left with his gallery, I was the only one left to be an artist... it was necessary to leave. But this situation is giving me a lot of joy, I have discovered a great neighborhood."
For example?
“Here you can find the old neighborhood life, the shop, the people who call you by name, the social fabric. I have this studio in front of the post office and I observe the people queuing. We smile at each other, it's a visual exchange, I like it."
Where are you from Manuel?
“I have Sicilian origins, but I am a Milanese, or rather, a Lambratese to be precise. I was born and raised in Milan and, except for a moment of healthy passion for Istanbul, I have always been in Milan."
How did your work come about?
“I did the most classical studies: art high school and then the Brera Academy, where I studied sculpture. I actually started art school wanting to be an architect. Then I met an architecture professor and I did sculpture, and then an anatomy professor who made me fall in love with painting. A chain of encounters that brought me to where I am. At the beginning, but not anymore, I was very shy when I had to talk about my work. To support myself I made sets, but then there was this part of me, that of the artist, which was not easy to explain, to communicate".
What are your works about?
“In reality my painting work is profoundly linked to memory, to memories. My first works were painted on the worn and ruined sheets that had belonged to my grandmother. I'll say something, which may seem unorthodox: you may like one of my paintings or not, but there is always something that digs into people's memories. It never leaves you without a hold. I'm interested in recovering a thread with my memory. Anyone who knows me knows that I am totally passionate about flea markets, antiques and "old stuff". I like to investigate the experience of the city through the "old" fabric of which the city itself frees itself. I always think: what do people get rid of? And why?"
Like an anthropological investigation…
"Exact. In the first markets that I visited with my parents, I remember that kneelers were still being sold, because a few decades earlier people used them on a daily basis. A historical trace, of disappeared habits. Here, I experience the antiques market or the junk dealers' shops like core drilling in the earth. If you look at what is for sale, you see over the years what has happened, what has changed. For me, the flea market is the "coring of the culture of the moment": some eliminate and some retain. An alternation that I believe is fundamental for a new life to be born. A bit like I did with the piano in the performance with Vinicio Capossela (Sinfonia Numero, 2012), where I no longer returned notes or sounds to the piano, but simply the ticking of the rain bouncing on the keys, an action that gave a new identity and from which new things were born. Mold, too."
How do you identify your style, your way of dressing?
“I couldn't precisely identify my way of dressing, I'd say it's monochromatic, simple. In this period I use loose-cut clothing, I never follow the trend, but I am attentive to taste, my own. I like to feel comfortable in certain situations. And this is my uniform, it identifies me. Luckily my job allows me to walk around "with swagger", and dress however I want. Even in jeans and a t-shirt. The artist is forgiven everything! But, now more than ever, I like being comfortable with clothes. I don't like clothes that have a short life, I'm not talking about low quality fabrics, but about aesthetics. I can't stand any more deconstructed coats that are beautiful for three months, and then become ridiculous, out of fashion. I prefer something classic, with a lot of personality. That's why I like Fortela's style."
How do you usually “dress” for work?
“I have this habit: I always start working without changing my clothes... Anyway, I tell myself, I just have to paint two things, two details, and then I end up getting dirty. Paradoxically, if I went to the studio with a thoughtful and particular look, I would ruin it. Instead, with this "uniform", a little oversized, it's as if I were wearing my canvas, and even if I get paint on it, I feel ready for anything, from an aperitif to a formal dinner. I feel like I'm wearing armor. “My armour” as an artist warrior. Different thing on your hands. I get my hands really dirty and I don't like having them messy. On the other hand, a paint stain on my pants or shoes doesn't bother me. After all, Jean Michael Basquiat used Armani clothes to paint: a habit - or perhaps a strategy - "stolen" from Picasso and Salvador Dalì. I like Basquiat: my latest painting cycle, the one with the clouds, is full of many quotes, such as the use of the spray can, typical of graffiti artists".
How did your connection with Fortela begin?
“I met Alessia Giacobino, the designer of the women's line, because she became a friend of my girlfriend. There was an immediate feeling. This is how I got to know and love the brand and the men's collection, which reflects me a lot. Fortela has that spontaneity of style, it is located in a segment that belongs to me, it is that idea of the right fashion, that armor in fact, of which I feel complicit. The other day I saw a medieval film, and I noticed the movements of the warriors, who struggled to be spontaneous, free. Instead Fortela follows you perfectly, it is "my armour", comfortable, beautiful, strong".
Favorite color?
"The blue. I use it all the time. I always start from white, and then pigment and mix. But the first pigment I use is always blue, even if I have to make a green, I always put blue at the beginning. I like it: when I paint views of trees I draw the sky first. Blue is always there. I love it in all its shades… and I love all the colors that come from it. Being a primary color it "gives" a lot of other colors."
Heart accessory?
“I love hats, my grandfather's Borsalinos, or the fedoras purchased over time. I always wear a hat, from a wool cap to a trucker cap. But my real fetish is an old leather suitcase, which has never abandoned me over the years. I bought it as a kid, it cost a million lire, I bought it in Paolo Sarpi, during a “Fuori Tutto”. I bought it with an excellent discount, but I was only 18 years old and that amount was very high, I spent all my savings on it: since that day it has been my suitcase and has always accompanied me. And it's uncomfortable, heavy, it doesn't fit in the overhead bins... but I will never, ever compromise on the trolley! Now it has become more expensive for me to repair it than to have an identical one made, but I can't let go of it... ah, your memory plays on you..."
Interview by Benedetta Rossi