Michele Cascella - Portofino

The subject depicted here is revisited in several works by Michele Cascella. The painter, during his travels, often stayed in Portofino, while his most famous subjects of this area are the many views of the port, with its sails and colorful houses. Occasionally, he dazzles us with rarer and more intimate glimpses of the hinterland. In this case, he presents us with the Church of Divo Martino, located in the oldest part of the port. The church appears to date to the 12th century, built in Lombard Romanesque style, and has long been a distinctive feature of Portofino.

The style of the work, in this case, is naturally influenced by the technique used to create it. We are dealing with a lithography, a type of graphic art. The word itself derives from the Greek and means "writing on stone." Indeed, the technique is based on the mutual repulsion of oily and aqueous materials. After initially preparing a very thick stone slab, the artist begins to create his drawing with a grease pencil. When the ink is applied to the stone, it adheres only to the drawing itself. Following previously marked lines on the stone, the sheet of paper is placed on the slab and the whole is pressed, thus transferring and imprinting the design onto the paper. Each color requires a separate plate. Thanks to the unique nature of the technique, the graphic before us almost resembles a pencil drawing, precisely because of the porosity of the stone, which, unlike other graphic techniques, results in a less incisive line.

In both his paintings and his engravings, we can see the extraordinary technical prowess of Michele Cascella's artistic approach. In his works, the entire structure is determined by an intricate hatching technique that gives form to objects, creates volume, and measures space. The result is a composition that, in addition to demonstrating great draftsmanship, captures the vibrations of light on objects and their interaction with the atmosphere. However, the defining characteristic of Michela Cascella's work, whether painting or engraving, is the leading role played by color. Indeed, the Ortona-born painter's research has always focused on developing a precious, brilliant, and luminous polychrome.

Michele Cascella (* 1892 - † 1989) was born in Ortona, in the province of Chieti. Born into an artistic family, he demonstrated a talent for drawing and painting from a young age, evidenced by the presence of works executed before his twenties. Through experimentation with various techniques, he developed a distinctive pictorial language in the creation of landscapes and floral compositions, distinguished by a particularly powerful chromatic palette. As Pasqualone explains, part of the excitement his works inspire stems from the subtle balance he strikes, crossing the threshold between Symbolism and Impressionism. These works still retain their power today, captivating viewers and enthusiasts alike. Furthermore, Cascella resisted the allure of the intellectual currents of the last century; he chose to pursue a more appealing and immediate style, accessible to a wider audience, and this continues to contribute to the widespread reception and appreciation of his paintings.

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