Leaf-eyes, variable dimensions, painted on eucalyptus and olive bark with enamels and acrylics.

Leaf-eyes, 25x13x5 cm and Leaf-tears (citation from the Peruvian Lagrimones), 35x25x5 cm, painted with enamels on Lecce stone.

The leaf is used as a symbol of memory for the olive tree which, struck by Xylella, has lost its lush vegetation; by inserting the pupil (associated with the olive) it is like desiring the rebirth of these trees through an action of anthropomorphization. These works were created to be stage props, while “Leaf-tears” represents the guardian located in a space (that of Le Fattizze) which allowed its creation and therefore welcomes it to preserve the memory and pain for the partial loss of the Giants. If there could be a subsequent development, I imagine Leaf-eyes painted on bark fallen to the ground and placed on the trunks, like a second skin. They would be invisible works, yet visible to those who pick them up and observe them carefully – like a work within the work of nature itself: a dialogue between nature and artifice. A work that aims to reawaken the capacity for observation in human beings.

I attended the the International ArtResidency Radicate, a traveling scenic restitution, the result of the workshop directed by Gregorio Amicuzi and Viviana Bovino. This project involved participants from different countries, together with the inhabitants of Villaggio Boncore and the Campo dei Giganti.

The meeting with the local community proved fundamental: listening to the stories, particularly those of Mr. Angelo, the owner of the land, provided me with precious suggestions, as did the observations in the olive field. During the workshop dedicated to the ancient olive trees affected by Xylella at the Field of Giants, I had further inspirations. I decided to create leaves with eyes inside, to emphasize the importance of these trees, which are creatures rich in memories. Even if devoid of leaves and covered in slaked lime, the olive trees can still emanate special energies: some have new shoots, others do not. I began to make a series of sketches to fix this idea, studying the various shapes of leaves on paper, inserting the pupils thinking they could also represent their fruits, the olives. Thus, a succession of shapes was created that call to each other: leaves as eyes, olives as pupils.

To realize these ideas, I went to Le Fattizze d’Arneo, an extraordinary agri-camping managed by extremely creative and hardworking people, who hosted us during the residency. During a walk, I looked for recycled materials and found a scrap of Lecce stone and eucalyptus bark, on which I painted the leaf-eyes. I had never used Lecce stone before, but Mr. Cosimo, a great craftsman and inventor, provided me with explanations and tools to work it. I treated the stone like a canvas, creating a small bas-relief of the eye peeking out from the stone, as if it were bark. With another piece of stone, larger, recovered from a scrap, I painted a crying mask inspired by the Peruvian Lagrimones: instead of red tears, I used green, recalling the leaf-eyes.

At Gregorio’s suggestion, I painted the back of the bark with the same white lime used by Ulderico to paint the trees of the Campo; the barks were thus placed on the olive trees, creating a mimetic effect. The actors, who detached them one by one and used them as a mask on their own face, thus created an effect of surprise. The limit of using only white, red, and green helped me develop minimal variations, creating a coherent design for the eyes of the leaves. I was also lent the sky-blue color, which expanded the tones and recalled the sky, a symbol of connection and spirituality. Gregorio suggested placing these stage props on the bark of the olive trees, so that the actors could take them and use them. For this reason, I painted some barks with lime, camouflaging them with that of the trees, and on the Field, walking together, we found pieces of fallen bark. I created some leaf-eyes with these and the effect is even more pictorial, while the eucalyptus wood has a more marked graphic output. The barks resting on the trunks like a second skin hide the eyes, revealing them only to those who pick them up; by placing the painted bark over their eyes, the actors are as if they were seeing through the trees, as an amplification of their sight intended in a metaphorical sense. On the Lecce stone, the eye has petrified and, in fact, this stone is used for the funeral of the olive trees in the final restitution show.

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.