Marika Grassano, born on December 30, 1989, in San Severo, Italy, and now residing in London for over a decade, is making waves in the world of art. Splitting her time between her home country, the UK, and Cologne, where her grandparents live, she embarked on a unique journey from volleyball to art.
After discontinuing her volleyball career at the age of twenty-three, Marika relocated to the United Kingdom, where she now lives and works. In parallel, she continued to express herself through drawing and painting, ranging from pencil and Bic pen comics to abstract experimentation.
A recent turn of events led Marika to participate in public events after her paintings had already adorned the homes of acquaintances and friends.
Collective Recognitions
In a significant recognition of her talent, Marika’s painting titled “Fire” was selected for the International Art Prize “Dante Alighieri” on July 7, 2021. It was exhibited at the Palazzo Borghese in Florence and featured in the artistic catalog “Art Now” number 3 for that year. She received the artistic plaque “Dante Alighieri.”
In 2021, Marika’s painting “Inferno” was chosen for the 1st Visual Art Review “Lucera Città d’Arte,” organized by the cultural association Daunia&Sannio, held at the municipal library of Lucera (FG) from September 12 to 18, 2021.
On June 4, 2022, her painting “Fire” secured third place at the Literature, Photography, and Fine Arts Prize “Creatività Itinerante” in Rodi Garganico, FG.
In 2022, Marika was among the selected artists for the exhibition project “Darteweek” in Lecce, from July 7 to 14. Three of her works, “This is the war,” “Fire,” and “I giardini di marzo,” participated in the “Imago” Exhibition, held at the prestigious Palazzo Turrisi. Her works received acclaim from art critics Claudia Presicce (Gruppo Il Messaggero) and Antonio Viannei. These works and the critical reviews are featured in the “Darteweek” Art Catalog.
In 2022, her painting “The war” was part of the Collective Exhibition “Biennale delle Arti visive Terra d’Otranto,” curated by the Academy “Italia in Arte nel Mondo.” The exhibition took place in Lecce at L’Antica Galleria “E. Maccagnini” from December 1 to 10, 2022.
On September 23, 2023, at the invitation of the critical commission of Artexpò Gallery Milano, Marika will participate with four paintings in the Collective Exhibition in Montecarlo, Principality of Monaco, at the Sincerity Congress Hall of Hotel Montecarlo Bay. She will receive the Oscar of Creativity – Montecarlo 2023, and two of her works will be included in the printed catalog.
Publishing
Marika’s painting “Come in cielo così in terra” became the cover image for the book “Torneremo a guardare il mare – Pensieri riversi in posizione fetale,” published by Oceano Edizioni in 2021 and authored by Maria Teresa Infante.
Her painting “Fire” graced the cover of the poetic collection “Fulmine a ciel sereno,” published by Oceano Edizioni in 2021 and authored by Raffaele Buccino.
Three of her works, “Etnie – Gradazioni d’esistenze,” “Eden,” and “Nebulose esistenziali,” are part of the art-literary project “Parole che non conoscevo,” published by Oceano Edizioni in collaboration with the SOS Oncology Association, aiming to improve the care conditions for oncology patients. All proceeds will be donated to the San Marco Hospital in Zingonia and the San Pietro Hospital in Ponte San Pietro (BG).
Critique
Marika’s art, as noted by Prof. Mauro Paolo Pietro Montacchiesi, honorary academician of the “G. Gioachino Belli” Academy (Rome) and the Pontifical Tiberina Academy (Rome), is a totalizing form of art akin to the abstractionism of Vasilij Kandinskij. It resonates with Kandinskij’s “Primo Acquerello Astratto.”
Marika Grassano’s art is a manifestation of her perceptions, sensations, and spontaneity, springing from the emotions of her inner universe.
Note: The text includes excerpts from the critical note by Prof. Mauro Paolo Pietro Montacchiesi.
