“Looking at the images of people –and especially women- offered by media nowadays, I realised that they are conceived as merely decorative objects. In my country in the last few years this idea is getting stronger and stronger. Thus when I look at someone my intent is in trying to recognise his authentic expressivity, the real human identity hidden behind masks of perfects bodies, brand new clothes, accessories and even situations.In my works I do not catch emotions. I try to express my need to see truth and dignity in a simple image of a person beyond the appearance, beyond the surface of beauty. I portrait only people that are close to me, and I use the painting technique because I want to live and discuss every millimetre of my work, having not only a conceptual approach but also a physical one with it. My approach to drawing is different: I catch images from my mind and I develop them following the sign on paper in a way that is even faster than my thoughts. Thus I do not look for the same meaning I look for while I am painting. While I am drawing I just try to realise my urgent need to see images that represent my self-perception in a given time.
I choose my subjects among people I know. I usually choose people that I esteem and that I consider interesting because of their intense personality that shine out trough their appearance. I do not look for people with conventional aesthetic presences, neither with some weird particularities on their body to surprise or disgust. I just want to celebrate the common female figure and identify her authentic value. I do not look for satisfying the sense of beauty or to scandal my public. I have the need to use nakedness to get the most pure image. People who see my paintings have to perceive the feeling of being in front of an intimate image isolated from every geographical or historical context. For this reason such intimate and isolated image is monumental. I often paint self-portraits to observe myself watchfully. In my complete self-portrait I offer my naked body to external judgments as a manifesto of my painting. I am the main subject of my drawing, but my drawing conception differs from my painting one. In my painting I look at me closely, I look at me in my eyes, and I am trapped in this nearness. In my drawing I see myself from above, acting in a place where there is no weight and no logical rules”.

Miriam Pertegato