ARTIST
About Francesca
Francesca Arcidiaco, born in Sicily but a long time resident in the U.K., has been a passionate artist all her life. Self-taught and naturally talented, she focused on watercolour and water-based art techniques in her teens and twenties. A demanding career slowed down her production in later years, until she moved to Japan in 2010.
Her discovery of Japanese art and culture reawakened her desire to paint and she practiced Sumi-e and Nihonga for three + years under the tutelage of professional artists. Her production of classic Japanese art in a variety of mediums was exhibited in Tokyo and attracted appreciation from Japanese art critics.
She continues to paint in the classic Japanese styles and has received acclaims and commissions in recent years.
Her return to the UK in 2014 allowed Francesca the opportunity to hone Western painting techniques at accredited schools. She attended the Heatherley‘s School of Fine Art, West Dean College of Arts and advanced courses by professional artists. She focuses on portraiture and landscapes and her favourite medium is oil.
Francesca’s portraits are heavily influenced by Japanese aesthetics and cultural principles. She says that the Japanese obsession with a realistic depiction of natural details has taught her to sharpen her perception and to see the subject in “super focus”. This results in paintings in which the essence of the person portrayed shines clearly through in delicate realistic details.
Exhibitions
Oxmarket Gallery, Chichester West Sussex, CAS group annual exhibitions
Shortlisted for the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2021
Biale of Estremoz, Portugal, March 2023
"Reflections" Anna Steinhouse Fine Art Gallery, London, UK, September 2023 "Vivere in Blu" - Lucca, Italy, November 2023
"Arbor Vitae" - Lucca, Italy, November 2023
