Francesco Licursi is a young Italian artist born on October 8, 1997. His artistic journey took a significant turn at the age of 16 when he began exploring a graphic technique that he later identified as automatic drawing. This practice started during his bus rides between school and home, serving as a way to alleviate the anxieties of that period.
“One day, while on the bus from school to home, I felt the urge to draw. It could have been the music, the movement of the bus, the anxieties of that time, or simply the need to express myself without filters. I started to sketch on a piece of graph paper, marking the beginning of a long series of what I later discovered to be automatic drawings.”
This technique allowed him to unleash his imagination, letting the lines spontaneously transform into faces, objects, and landscapes. Through this method, Licursi accesses a deep and authentic part of himself, viewing his drawings as fragments of his soul.
“I never just sought the marks; after a while, they presented themselves to me as recognizable forms, like when I was a child and saw faces in wood grains. Gradually, the drawings became more complex and free; my only goal was to fill the entire sheet. What emerged wasn’t determined by me but by a force I later recognized as the impulses of the unconscious.”
In 2022, Licursi completed his studies at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Foggia, earning a bachelor’s degree in Painting. He presented two theses: one in Art History titled “Free Drawing: From Doodling to Automatic Drawing” and the artistic thesis “Triptych Amor Omnia Vincit.”
Since 2019, his artistic style has rapidly evolved, transitioning from automatic drawing to oil painting and terracotta sculpture. This journey led to the creation of the series “Genesi,” which combines hyperrealistic subjects with the calligraphic style of automatic drawing. The “Genesi” series explores existential themes such as the origin of life, prompting deep questions and introspection among viewers.
“Often, the idea for subjects comes from previously made automatic drawings and then elaborated into preliminary sketches, or from sudden intuitions sparked by observation and the sensations it gives me.”
Licursi’s work is profoundly influenced by psychoanalytic theories, particularly Jung’s concepts of archetypes and Freud’s ideas about artistic creativity as a form of sublimation.
“In 2015, while reading Anna Freud’s essay ‘The Ego and the Mechanisms of Defense,’ I confirmed my belief that my drawings were a language of the unconscious. I discovered the existence of the tenth defense mechanism, sublimation, which can be defined as the ability to transform material from the unconscious into art.”
Automatic drawing was discovered by the Surrealists – Dalí, Masson, and Miró – as a method to represent their unconscious. Licursi has also been influenced by Baroque and Renaissance artists, as well as Flemish painter Hieronymus Bosch and contemporary artist Adriano Fida.
A notable example of his work is the triptych “Amor Omnia Vincit” (2021), which includes the central painting “In Veritas,” “Ecce Homo,” and “Ecce Mulier.” This triptych represents the creation of man and woman and the connection between the masculine and feminine principles.
His works have been exhibited in various shows, receiving praise for their ability to evoke deep emotions and stimulate reflection on universal themes of human existence. Licursi continues to explore new forms of artistic expression, keeping automatic drawing at the core of his creative practice. He is an artist who delves deeply into the unconscious and human impulses through automatic drawing. His art is a synthesis of psychoanalytic theories and historical influences, making him a unique interpreter of the human inner world. His professional career is marked by continuous research and experimentation, establishing him as a promising figure in contemporary art.
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