A Gift From Italy - Frederick Studio

I’ve mentioned here before that the Internet has made “Gemini Art” an international publication. One of the first contacts I received was from a fellow artist in Italy, Federico Forconi. Freddie also posts a blog about his artwork. I have listed his link on this site for quite a while.


Freddie recently asked for a picture of me because we have actually never met. I was pleased to find that his request for a picture was to use as a resource to create artwork of his own. He has sent me a copy of the finished work as a gift. I was very flattered.


Our artistic styles and media are very different. I’m a traditionalist, Freddie works in a very modern, abstract, digital format. I believe our only common artistic frame of reference is that we both love to create and use our imaginations.


In appreciation for his gift I have posted a copy of his “portrait” of me and a brief interview (think of “The Actor’s Studio" ala Gemini Art) we conducted via questionnaire. I have left his responses to the questions just as he answered with very little editing. I love how his vowels and adjectives flip-flop occasionally and his prepositions go askew sometimes. Leaving it like this gives us a sense of what I’m sure is a very cute Italian accent. I’m so glad he speaks English. Goodness knows I could never hope to speak his beautiful language. I hope you enjoy this feature on Federico Forconi.


GA: Age, Personal Stats, Location?


Freddie: I am 42, I am fiancé and definitely in love, I live in Florence, (my hometown) - Italy


GA: Education and Background?


Freddie: I studied to become an accountant: I tried to work as an accountant but I hated that job! In family my dad was a graphic (now he’s retired) and he worked as graphic and artist for many Italian publisher. My mother is a housewife (but non desperate). My brother work as editor and graphic for a publisher. At the moment I work in the same publisher but at the commercial department!


GA: Artistic medium and preferred aesthetic?


Freddie: The artistic mediums I prefer are Cinema and photography. Cinema, the so-called 7th art has been keeping me alive for 42 years! My favourite directors are Stanley Kubrick and Pedro Almodovar! I love very much the American science fiction films of the fifties such as Body Snatchers, the War of the Worlds, the Japanese Godzilla! About photography my favourite artist is the American photographer David Lachapelle. Last year my publisher published the catalogue of his exhibition hold in Florence and I really fall in love with his artwork. In my photos I I love using Photoshop to recreate a sort of science fiction atmosphere in my photos for example in “Clones Attack!” and “New World”. These two photos are visible on my blog: http://frederickstudio.splinder.com/. (key words on Google: Frederick Studio) . The models of my photos are some friends of mine.


GA: Personal philosophy?


Freddie: Anywhere you go there You exist!


GA: Politics and religion?


Freddie: Politically I am left-wing! If I were American I would have voted for Obama! I did not vote for the government currently in power in Italy, whose prime minister is Silvio Berlusconi, the man that in an interview defined the American President, Barack Obama, “a tanned man”!?! Regarding my religion I am Buddhist and a member of the Soka Gakkai Association an international Buddhist association. Soka Gakkai promotes the peace and culture throughout the world. One of the member is Tina Turner.


GA: Would you ever consider visiting the US? Why or why not?


Freddie: I visited United States in 1991: New York City, Boston and Chicago (Obama’s Town). I loved these towns. New York City is my favourite American Town probably because in my imaginary is the greatest movie set in the world: its skyscrapers made me think to some movie masterpieces such as Metropolis by Fritz Lang and Blade Runner by Ridley Scott even if the first was German and the latter was set in Los Angeles in 2040. I also enjoied very much the Chicago’s Downtown. The towers along the Michigan Lake reminds me the Tuscan’s town of San Gimignano that is situated not very far from Siena. San Gimignano is very famous too for its towers. Evidently I am also fascinated from modern architecture and in Big Apple and the Windy City you’ll be spoilded for choice. But I would like to visit U.S.A. one more time. I am attracted from the American big spaces such as Grand Canyon, Sequoia Parks and Devil’s Tower in Wyoming and where Spielberg shot “Close Encounters Of The Third Kind”.


GA: Why do you go by Freddie "FEET"?


Freddie: probably you are referring to my previous e-mail address freddiefeet@email.it. That address is not more valid. I chosen that name because some friends of mine gave me as nickname Fred Flintstone, the famous Hanna & Barbera Cartoon of the Flintstones: Fred Flintstone is always barefoot. In fact in summer I often wear flipflops , of course barefoot like Fred Flintstones… In Italy despite Flip-Flops are in fashion if you wear them you can cause an uproar amongst Italians. Anyway my new e-mail address is: frederickstudio@email.it.


GA: What are you truly passionate about?


Freddie: Definitely CINEMA!


GA: What makes you laugh? What makes you cry? What makes you angry?


Freddie: What makes me laugh? Spontaneity! And the Italian stand-up comedian Luciana Littizzetto! (http://www.lucianalittizzetto.it/). What makes me cry? A truly romantic film (such as Moulin Rouge or Brokeback Mountain)! What Makes me Angry? Italian Citizens that voted for the actual Italian government makes me angry. As I already said, the prime minister is Silvio Berlusconi an Italian media tycoon: Silvio Berlusconi in its politics only take care of his huge private business.


GA: Anything you want to add?


Freddie: Be Yourselves tonight! And today and each day for the rest of your lives!


CIAO DA FREDDIE - Italy

Kawena's Pirate Steals Our Heart

A few months ago I discovered an amazing new artist that is doing beautiful things with his work. The young (25 year old) and very talented David Kawena combines the romanticized fantasy illustrative style of Walt Disney’s animated classics with seductive male subjects. I previously posted a series created by David called the “Disney Heroes”. I was happy to write a brief review of the series and we have occasionally corresponded since then. The Disney Heroes series has gained David a large and growing fan base. I’m very happy for him. I was also happy to find a new Disney Hero David created based on the character Will Turner from Pirates of the Caribbean. This work is the first of the Disney Heroes based on a live action character instead of an animated hero.

The likeness to Orlando Bloom is remarkable. In keeping with the theme of the remainder of the series, Kawena employs an almost monochromatic sepia-toned palette to give it an Abercrombie and Fitch styling. It was fun to see animated characters brought to life this way. Its nice to see Kawena can achieve the same effect with live characters. Kawena’s Will Turner is appropriately costumed in a sexy version of his movie wardrobe. Its as if our rookie pirate decided to shop from the International Male catalog. He’s accessorized with his Aztec gold medallion and head wear borrowed from his buddy Captain Jack. I hope the swooning Miss Swann appreciates his new look as much as the rest of us do.

I have wondered why Kawena’s work has gained popularity so quickly. The obvious reason is that the subjects are very sexy. However, the Internet is full of websites featuring photos of attractive fitness models. David’s work appeals on another level. He interprets the male subject with a non-threatening innocence. The men in Kawena’s artwork are sexy and accessible without being vulgar. Female subjects have been portrayed in this way for years. Romance novels are covered with bodice busting imagery. A sexy, scantily clad woman can look trashy or virginal and vulnerable just by the costume, setting and expression of the model. David Kawena has found the technique to accomplish the same thing with male subjects.

The other key to his success is the cultural shift that has occurred. At one time animated characters were subjects for children. Cartoons were a medium to keep kids entertained on Saturday morning while mom cleaned the house and dad washed the car. But now, thanks to Japanese anime and manga, this artwork has gained an audience that includes the young adult/college-age generation. The saturation of our media with animated characters in video games and graphic novels has developed a very discriminating audience. They are also very comfortable with this media and don’t see it as juvenile or immature. Those of us from the previous generation are charmed by the nostalgia of this work, remembering the fantasies inspired by the original Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, and Little Mermaid. It should be no surprise that Kawena’s work has found a large and growing audience.

I would like to extend my thanks to David Kawena for providing me with an unwatermarked copy of this work to post on the blog. It’s a real honor for me to be allowed to post and review his work. In checking my website statistics I have found that the articles written about him are the most visited on my site. The David Kawena search terms are the most frequent entry points for new viewers of the Gemini Art blog. Pages featuring his work receive hundreds of page views per month.

I hope the viewers and readers of this site will respect David’s intellectual property rights and not copy or redistribute his work without his permission. In the email from David, he tipped me off to an upcoming big event. I won’t spoil it for him, but please stay tuned. I will be sure to share the news with you as soon as he gives permission.

David Kawena Does Disney

It seems these days every major male celebrity, model and athlete has to promote himself with the obligatory “fashion photo shoot”. You know who I’m talking about, David Beckham, Ben Affleck, Ashton Kutcher, Mark Wahlberg, etc. The list goes on and on. They spend more time on the cover of GQ than they do on the movie set. It’s not enough that an actor can act. He now has to market himself in some Abercrombie-esque fashion because that’s what appeals to the demographic that goes to movies, i.e. the adolescent teen/young adult population (and gay men). Not that I’m complaining. You know the type of photo I’m talking about. It’s real “artsy”. The photo is usually in black and white or sepia toned with dramatic high contrast lighting. The model is almost always styled in a manner to emphasize his “physical fitness” wearing little more than accessory items. Apparently, even the leading men of Disney’s animated features have gotten into this new A-list actor fad.

I recently saw the latest Walt Disney animated feature, oops I mean romantic comedy, Enchanted. As usual it was amazing. It has great music, a fun story and was a real visual fantasy. While I watched the handsome Patrick Dempsey and the very pretty James Marsden, it reminded me of just how adorable Disney’s leading men are. They come from a long tradition of perfect princes such as Eric in Mermaid, Philip in Sleeping Beauty, Aladdin the Prince of Thieves and even Tarzan King of the Apes. I laughed at myself when thinking about how attractive I thought each of those characters is.

While I was thinking about it I began to realize that the first crush of every young gay guy is probably one of those charming Disney cartoon men. I mean, we feed that stuff to our children as if its American mythology. In a perfect world we want our lives to turn out the way a Disney plot concludes, right? The Disney heroes are beyond perfect. They’re strong, brave, handsome, kind. You can always depend on the guy to come charging to the rescue no matter what. What’s not to like?

For young gay guys who are just starting to feel that they are a little different (yes, it does feel different even in grade school) the Disney hero is a safe first crush. It’s safe because he’s not real. It can be explained away as fantasy, hero-worship, love of Disney cartoons, whatever. The Disney world is so welcoming to young gay kids. When real boys are being mean to the gay kid and calling him names, the Disney fantasy world is so much more appealing. The gay community has a lot to thank Walt Disney for.

So, it’s not surprising that when three worlds collide, the Disney world, the art world, and the gay world, a new and interesting creation is born. I’m leading up to an introduction and explanation of an artist I recently discovered. David Kawena is an artist/illustrator working in Israel. I had been searching blogs and links related to the Enchanted movie and found a link to him. He had written briefly about the movie and segued into a discussion of his admiration of other Disney heroes and his interpretation of them.

I was fascinated that Kawena is located in Israel. I sent him a note asking about what it was like to be a gay artist working the Middle East. I’ve always considered that to be such a religiously and culturally volatile part of the world that it would be dangerous to be a gay artist there. Kawena responded,


“Actually being (a) gay artist, or straight artists who deals with ‘gay’ issues
is pretty much a cool thing to be in Israel! Israel is very open minded and very
narrow minded too - it's (a) mix of a place. We have a lot openly gay artists
here, most of them are on prime time television - actors, fashion designers -
and many singers who are openly gay are at the top of the national charts all
the time. I do most of my work outside of Israel, but that's a different
subject. I could very well be categorized as a straight artist who dose gay
work, or vise versa... You know?!”

As you can see, Kawena’s work is primarily digital media. While the Disney Heroes pieces are a somewhat cheeky pin-up spin on these fairytale characters, I found other pieces of great sophistication. His digital rendering of the late Heath Ledger is breathtaking. So, for those of you art snobs out there that might “poo-poo” the digital media I ask you to reconsider when looking at this work. I certainly couldn’t do any better job with this portrait in watercolor, pastel, acrylic, oil, or finger-paints.

I hope you enjoyed the work of David Kawena. Leave a comment if you did.

Doing Digital

I've recently found a site called Deviant Art. I know, I know. The name of the site sounds suspicious, but believe me, it's not. I t mainly focuses on non-traditional artists. It's a clearing house for photographers, painters of all sorts, and digital artists. I've lately become fascinated by the digital artists. They are truly the innovators and pioneers of modern artists. Most of them share my love for fantasy art. That follows, doesn't it? People who love science fiction and fantasy usually love computers. Hence, their art medium becomes the new digital technology out there. One of the features that I love about Deviant Art (DA its commonly referred to) is that it allows for artists to compose tutorials and post them along side the artwork. Its a wonderful online community there. The spirit of collaboration is amazing. Its so supportive and encouraging. I've recently downloaded some tutorials on making digital art with Photoshop. I only have Photoshop Elements which is a stripped down version. But, most of the features are there. I also have an inexpensive WACOM pen tablet. That's what many of the artists say they use. I'm experimenting. If I get a piece completed I'll post it. I'll probably start a separate blog for the digital material. I understand that ArtBlogs4U is opposed to listing digital art. So, I'll give you the link when I do it.