Francesco De Molfetta
Italia • Italy
Name: Demo Surname: still to be decided Profession: bomb disposal expert Age: apparently young enough to be considered a promising talent, but perhaps older since he is already being talked about all over the world Residence: in Alice’s Wonderland Pipe dream: selling toys
Short and irreverent curriculum: he began his studies with the masters of the Eighties and, like a mischievous student, though with an above- average IQ, he mocked his teachers and headmasters. He reworked the lessons taught in that period, distorting myths, status symbols, truthful heroes and comic strips, politicians, and all that is venerated by rest of the herd. As often happens in the best classes, his “nerdy” classmates were lost by the wayside; he has a satchel full of black marks on the class register, but also notes from the best art critics in Italy and the world.
His works in Plasticine become sculptures in resin and various materials, and go all over the world. He was so determined that he defeated Batman, who retired to a slimmers’ clinic, secretly consoling himself with a Nutella ice cream (or maybe some kind of surrogate...); he deposits dud cheques with lots of zeroes at the end, drawn on the Bank of Toyland, he freezes wedding cakes and understands that Michelangelo’s true vocation was to open a mechanic’s workshop. The paparazzi say that he has been seen around recently with Pinocchio...
We investigated to learn more about him... we kept receiving only excellent criticism, invitations to exhibitions in big famous galleries, even to the Permanente Museum in Milan... and now to OPEN 18 in Venice... So this Francesco De Molfetta must be really good... we are not afraid to call him by his real name, because we know he is a True Artist of this century, a time when there are unfortunately very few certainties.
Georges Braque said that “Art is made to disturb, science reassures”. I prefer to believe the opposite and I trust in art for a little carefreeness and to remember that in life we have to be able to laugh. I believe Demo thinks the same way.
Serena Mormino, Curator