LEANA ZACCARINI
Born in Scotland of Scottish / Italian parents, Leana Zaccarini was whisked off to South Africa during the 1970's as a young child. She spent many years in Cape Town and Namibia and grew accustomed to the colours, sounds and smells of this rich and turbulent land. The vibrant, unforgivingly bright colours of nature, were the first and most intense inspiration of Leana's work.
In Cape Town Leana studied art and graphic design at the Ruth Prowse School of Art and art therapy through the Frank Joubert School of Art (headed up by Ruth Russel-Payne) as well as psychometry and psychological work tools for communication through the University of Innsbruck (Austria). She then worked within the advertising and design industry, where she used her artistic talents as well as analytical skills to bring about effective, creative business solutions.
Leana is an artist, artiste and communicator of expression and ideas. She expresses herself through her paintings, music and songs and craft works. During her life, many things have touched her soul and she tries to communicate these feelings through her art. Her inspirations are music, her psychological studies (especially for the exhibition "The mask within") and travelling. Leana has visited many places, such as Thailand, Africa, America, Denmark, Holland, Germany, Switzerland and so on. Each of these countries has been a very important inspiration for her art.
Leana's art works are a mix of pure colour with tactile and decorative elements. She loves the fact that people are not only able to look at her pieces, but touch them, feel them and discover texture and depth. That was the motive of her very first art exhibition that took place while she was still attending college and it was made up of a series of masks for The Touch Gallery, Cape Town in 1984.
Songs and music are great inspirations too, as well as dance and body movements in general. As a singer, music and its nuances have inspired many of Leana's works as well as lyrics. She has been inspired by many different genres of music, between soft rock, folk and blues. She has written many original songs (both lyrics and music) and has co-written originals together with Lilian Gray and Merton Barrow. Most of the pieces have been in the jazz and blues genre.
Most of the exhibitions that Leana has had took place in South Africa. In 1992 she used her psychological competences for the exhibition "The mask within" at the Frank Joubert School of Art of Western Cape. Four years later, in1996 her art works were displayed in Stellenbosch in the showcase "The Wonder of it all". In 1997 Leana's exhibition "A fourth dimension" was held at the Cape Town Observatory and Planetarium and then in Cafe Camissa. One year later the "Blue interlude" exhibition took place in Café Camissa too.
After a break, during which time she has concentrated on rearing her young son, Leana's art works were displayed in Edinburgh on 16 December 2005 at an exhibition of original paintings as part of the Scottish Art Council funded Entrepeneurs in Education art exhibition. Some of these works will again, be displayed in February 2006 at an exhibition organised by the Tartan Army.
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