Pierpaolo Miccolis (1985) is an Italian visual artist who lives and works in Puglia, Italy.
His practice stems from the belief that images possess a form of knowledge of their own, one that precedes language. His work develops as a constellation of images — animals, flowers, branches, bodies, architectures and landscapes — that recur and transform over time, not as symbols to be deciphered, but as presences capable of generating ever-changing relationships and meanings.
After an initial training in fashion design, he graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Bari. His early practice was shaped by an interest in symbolism, metamorphosis, religious syncretism and Western esoteric traditions. Over time, these elements have become part of a broader visual language in which memory, nature, spirituality and silence coexist.
Watercolour lies at the centre of his practice. Water and pigment actively participate in the construction of the image, introducing a constant tension between control and unpredictability, presence and dissolution. In recent years, his exploration of sumi-e painting has further deepened his investigation into essential gesture, reduction and the value of emptiness. The body and nature thus become privileged sites through which to explore identity, memory and metamorphosis.
His works are often organised in cycles and, rather than telling stories, create spaces for attention in which the image remains open and continues to generate questions.
Since 2015, he has collaborated with Pietre Vive Editore, with whom he published the monograph Famiglio in 2019. For the independent magazine The Bloody Mary Magazine, he curates the column Arcano. He has exhibited in solo and group exhibitions in Italy and abroad. His works are held in public and private collections, including the Fondazione Museo Pino Pascali and the Benaki Museum. He is the subject of the short film Contronatura, directed by Alessandro Piva.
Post
Story
Whatsapp