Italian sculptor Marco Di Lucca, who skillfully blends the dance of art with nature, brings his creative vision together with a master of casting to bring his works to life. Di Lucca’s sculptures impress the viewer not only with their flawless technique but also with their emotional depth. In this exclusive interview with Marco Di Lucca, we found answers to questions about the roots of his art, his upcoming projects and his place in the art world.
Could you briefly tell our readers about yourself?
My name is Marco Di Lucca and I am an Italian born artist residing in Colorado (USA). My early interest and passion in computer graphic led me to move around the globe and become a visual effect artist. With over 20 years of experience in the field of visual effects for the movies and tech industries, I had the chance to work for the most prestigious companies like Weta Digital(now Weta FX), Digital Domain, Industrial Light&Magic, Apple, Nvidia, where I helped, with my passion for the human forms, to bring to life numerous characters/creatures and digital humans.
How did you start your career as a sculptor? When and how did you decide to become interested in art?
My career as digital artist has always involved sculpture but obviously not in the traditional sense. Since 2014 I felt that only working in digital was not fulfilling enough for my creating streak and so I decided to turn to a medium that would be perfect for the sculptural (figurative) subjects: marble, which with its physical/optical properties and more specifically its translucency, it is capable to emulate very closely the look of our own skin and how it reacts to light rendering the surface soft and almost lifelike. In fact a common theme you will see throughout my work is my interest towards realism and the fascination with the human face and body. The reader will find that my work , both digital and traditional, revolves around portraiture but not limited to it.
What emotional or aesthetic messages do you aim to convey in your artistic works? What kind of reactions do you hope to get from the audience?
Generally speaking my ultimate goal with carving and sculpture is to convey a sense of beauty and aliveness in a piece even if the subject itself might be considered neither ‘beautiful’ or ‘alive’ per se . Realism (and photo realism ) in art has always fascinated me from young age and I’ve always tried to make my art pieces (both digital and traditional) as true to the real counter part as my always evolving skills could possibly allow with the chosen medium. And that with the hope that the viewers would find themself in a state of wonder on how it was possible to achieve such realism and somehow also feel connected to the piece because of an experience they’ve had at some point in their life. Take for instance the ‘Awkward kiss’ sculpture and the feeling of that very first kiss which not for everyone was the greatest first dating experience, or the Gollum whom external aspect wasn’t the most pleasing to the eyes and yet has captured and intrigued so many of us by reading or watching Lord of the Rings.
What do you pay attention to when choosing the marble you use in your sculptures? Which marble do you prefer and why?
I still consider myself a newbie stone sculptor having only actively carving for 2-3 years. With that in mind I did not have the chance to try different type of marble (or other stone) and my experience is limited to that of the places I have been living in. So ordinary Carrara marble or ‘statuary’ marble from Carrara/Pietrasanta region, Belgian ‘blue stone’ and Colorado Yule marble. Generally speaking I would go for a pure white marble as possible and preferably with a warmer undertone which allows for a nice glowing translucency , perfect to emulate human skin. I prefer marble that has a regular and fine grain structure and hardness which allows for fine detailing. Having said that though I have been surprised, a few times, by some interesting ‘look’ that marble veining added to some of my pieces.
What are the biggest challenges you face when working with marble and what strategies do you use to overcome these challenges?
Most of the times the challenges are logistical and practical. I do not have a big studio nor I have proper equipment to move around large blocks so I naturally tend to limit myself to carve pieces of a size I know I can manage. Other than that I mostly care about the quality and consistency of a given block of marble. Unfortunately I had experienced some breakage when already in advance stage of carving of a couple of busts (ear for example) using local marble from Colorado which is known to be somewhat softer than say Carrara marble. My understanding is , again being quite new to carving, I should be more mindful of what a specific marble or stone can allow the carved to do and not to force its limits. On the other hand though I do like the challenges and to dare and go over those limits As I feel like staying ‘conservative’ does not reflect my own personality.
Which projects and goals in your artistic journey excite you? What are your plans for the near future?
Truth to be told , now being 50, I feel like I would ditch my long and establish career in the digital world and dedicate myself to carving/sculpting full time. I feel like there is a sense of reward while carving, being covered in marble dust, tired a the end of the day that the desk job doesn’t provide me any longer. It’s a tough choice to make but I will surely do my best to keep learning and growing as a traditional artist and hopefully soon seen the fruits of the hard work I put in each and every one of my sculptures . Whether it will be patrons/collectors interested to have one of my pieces or being represented by a gallery the plan is to eventually be recognized as a marble sculptor just as I did as a digital artist.
Can you share the names and characteristics of your 3 favorite projects?
I am not sure if its a thing for every artist but I have been a bit obsessed with self portraiture. Is it an ego thing or is it just because that’s a subject most familiar to the artist?! Not sure but (other than the digital versions) I did enjoy carving my own skull and half écorché head. Part of the reason though is to be found into my personal interest in human anatomy and the necessity to know how our faces move and expresses. The other favorite piece to carve was definitely Gollum. That piece it particular is very much bound to my career as a visual effects artist. Having worked at Weta Digital in New Zealand, Peter Jackson vfx company I unfornutaly did not have the chance to work on Lord of the Rings as I happened to be there in-between the 2 trilogies. Gollum the digital character/creature so beliable on the screen, was one of the motivating reasons for me to leave Italy and follow the dream of working in the visual effect industry. So making a one of a kind Gollum sculpture in marble was for me a way to make up for that missing opportunity and also to challenge myself once more to make it as faithful and as realistic as the digital version but also in trying to capture my own vision of him especially in face expression in which I meant to convey the struggle the character/ creature was going through as he progressively transformed from Sméagol to Gollum.
+90 532 585 51 95
+90 532 585 51 95