Artist Statement, Lucio Cardone.
I am a tonal realistic and surrealist painter and a formalist sculptor.
My current practice is based on representing the figure in motion based on an understanding of the materiality of my chosen medium (be it painting or sculpture). My research has led me to discoveries about motion and how I might represent this in a static image. That motion/movement is perceived and understood by the viewer based on their experience. I can capture the figure in a moment of a sequence of movements (sometimes place them in the surreal) and the viewer will see the movement based on what they perceive through their experience (what came before and what comes after that moment).
My painting is very methodical, and I follow traditional rules and methods of preparing my canvas and applying paint, using stretched canvas and oil paints. I am interested in the materiality and the integrity of my medium, so it is important to me that I construct my own stretchers, I stretch, size, and prime them ready for painting. This allows control of sizes and grounds. The process is meditative and is the first step in my relationship with my painting.
In creating a painting, I usually take photographs and source images in magazines, journals, and the internet. I will then make a collage and manipulate the image manually or with Photoshop. The next step is to make a detailed drawing followed by a small painted study. This process allows me to get a feel for my subject and to draw out and solve any issues that inevitably arise when making a painting.
My painting and sculpture allow me to speak without words or voice; they are there to be seen and experienced.
MY BIO
Lucio was born to Italian migrants and educated in Adelaide, South Australia. He graduated with a Bachelor of Visual Art at Adelaide Central School of Art in 2023. His visual arts practice is multi-disciplinary (as he paints and sculpts), and is informed by life experience and his interest in figurative and surrealist art. He will move to Italy in 2024, drawn there by his heritage, his love for the country and the lifestyle, but most importantly the feeling of being where he truly belongs. Lucio will live and work in Pago Veiano, Benevento, Italy.
Lucio Cardone began his artistic career well before attaining his Bachelor of Visual Art and has exhibited regularly since 2015. He has participated in several group shows and student exhibitions.
Lucio’s work is planned, and process-driven, his methods are consistent, and he says, “Ralph Mayer’s book The Artist’s Handbook of Materials and Techniques is his Bible.” He is very interested in the materiality of his mediums, and how they behave, react, and can be manipulated to achieve desired results. Through both, his painting and sculpture Lucio invites the viewers to participate in his experience of the world. | 
