On Liberation, Abstraction, And Memory: Giovanni Leonardo Bassan Is The Artist That Offers You A Ticket Into His Brain

If you fancy a cursory glance at art that will help you float away, or that takes your mind to utter solace, look no further than the Italian-born contemporary artist Giovanni Leonardo Bassan. The Paris aficionado first emerged from the corners of Thiene, Vicenza, to charm us all with heartfelt craft and soul-tinged hooks. “The arts were somewhat intrinsic to my identity,” he blithely tells me, the moment we hop on Zoom. Employing breezy elements of everyday life and slinky references—on that note, he fires the Renaissance movement at point-blank range—Bassan conceives paintings with phenomenal skill. “For as long as I can remember, I still recall playing with colours and pencils as a young child,” he says, “which was something that made me happy then, and yet—as cheesy as it sounds—it never changed.”

The protégé pulls from all kinds of influences to create his own breed of creative genius. “I find the majority of my inspirations by everything that hovers around me, both physically and emotionally,” he says. “People, my boyfriend, friends, and strong events that are shaping our current history, anger, and the frustration of my generation, but also the unrespectful wildness of youth and a raw sense of joy.” After the first few years of self-discovery, Bassan worked through all the usual milestones by setting hopes alight and carving out a lane for his passion. To join these dots, he found the photography medium vital to his practice. “I take photos all the time—mostly because I have a terrible memory—to document my path,” he reflects. “I always have old cameras in my pocket, and that's the starting point of my artistic process.” Bassan them stresses the narrative aspect of photography, an aspect which helped him to strengthen his work from a deeper stance. “The picture itself isn't that important, as it just acts like a suggestion; what matters is the story I want to tell. It’s a long process that allowed me to focus on specific details and forget others in a multitude of layers that shape the final piece. I like to see my paintings as an accumulation of memories, in the same way as our brain work: selecting specific details of the moments we lived.”

It’s hard not to focus on Bassan’s antics—the flamboyant gestures twined with the accent of a real Italian bloke—although that’s probably the least fascinating thing about him. Moving on, we touched on Internet and its impact on his work. “I don’t think my aesthetic has much to do with the Internet,” he says, “but I believe it’s more the rushing development of technology that made my documentation process.” The pandemic has, unquestionably, brought forth a new dawn for digital media, which, lest we forget, have stormed our lives like never before. “I deliberately try to stay away as much as possible from screen time in the creative process. All the compositions and layouts are done in my studio by sketching on paper.”

Consisting of expressionist art, the artist states himself as polar opposite—abstract and representational—but the crux of it is, it works. “My approach actually is the opposite, going from representational to a more abstract form, but the relationship between these two is an extremely interesting point for me and a fundamental aspect of my vision,” he argues. And he’s kind of right: his 2019 solo show, Deluge, was as a transitory phase for the artist, pulling him away from pure abstraction towards figurative painting. “This body of work intersected with the social realism of 2019—the year of the show—gave a glimpse through my vision. It talks about environmental manifestations, concerts and raves of a young and international talent scene that has yet to be reckoned with often hostile surroundings. And it’s interesting how much it has changed in such a short period of time, as my paintings are now reflecting a completely new reality due the pandemic.”

A pandemic that shall not be named—right? Maybe. But for Bassan, these challenging times gave him freedom, which functioned as a form of liberation. “In order to feel liberated, first you need to feel imprisoned,” he says. “If I have to answer completely honestly, I don’t feel like that. But freedom of expression is liberating for me, especially the ability to paint my reality, my friends, my partner, have my voice heard and not be limited or suppressed.”

Encapsulating elements from a myriad of influences—Italian Renaissance, the Avant Gardes of the '900, black figurative painters, to name a few—he arranges his thoughts and visual elements with effortless beauty. Maybe it’s the Italian flair that drenches his narrative in vibrant hues, but his work draws you in through a calm, soothing poise, keeping you hooked with its evocative meaning. Fratellanza, one of his 2016 shows, makes for a grand example: “Fratellanza (2016) was a triptych that I presented in a group show in support of SMUG, a non-government network to address Human Rights emerging issues based on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression in Uganda, formed in 2014. Taking this situation to heart, I decided to open my works, for the first time—and it remained that way ever since—to a more intimate dimension, never touched before in my past exhibitions. It’s a moment where I started talking about my life, opening a more private space to the spectators, in that case: three paintings, three brothers, three love stories.”

With experience as a collaborator of Michele Lamy, Bassan has earned his stripes as one of her devotees. His quirky and distinctive brushstrokes meld together all his influences into a smooth medley that is much dear to him. “I’m currently also head of the Rick Owens Furniture department, but definitely working at close contact with Michele Lamy is the highlight of my journey,” he concurs. “It’s been more than 10 years now and the amazing experiences and growth that I experiment with her on my side will be something that I will always carefully guard.”

It goes without saying that Bassan has been on quite a journey. Currently, the artist is closely collaborating with Comme des Garçons—who he deems a creative phenomenon—for a special fragrance project. It’s also, undeniably, about staying authentic to his art, which I get the feeling Giovanni has learned to take in his stride. “I’m honoured for being chosen by Comme des Garçons to develop a new special project for their Perfume collection,” he says. “I deeply respect and admire the Maison for its unique and elevated aesthetic, and for the liaisons with the contemporary art world. Their collaborations with artists are among my favourites in the whole system, for the authenticity in the interconnections between escapism and realism. I’m thrilled by the possibility to challenge myself to interpret such an amazing product and use my vision to interpret somebody else's work.”

As we wrap up our conversation, it sounds Bassan aches for a wild trip. “Next step will be Mumbai!” he exclaims. “We’re waiting for this pandemic to pass in order to set the final details of my new solo show at Project 88 Gallery. I feel a deep and personal connection with India since my last trip there and the relationships I built with the friends I met evolved in beautiful ways, bringing this project to life.” Not just a trip, but he aches for a proper adventure and fresh inspirations. “After a photographic documentation of my journey in the north of India, I wanted to express it with my drawings and paintings through a diary,” he says, “leaving a carte blanche to integrate a final outcome that’s out of my control; I wanna go wild!”

The rest, as they say, is history. But of one thing I’m certain: Giovanni’s zeal will reap even bigger rewards.

Visit www.giovannileonardobassan.com for more information and details of the artist’s work.