Daniela Maria Gargiulo – ‘Rock, Paper, Scissors’ – Local Landscapes in Collage

Rock Paper Scissors is an exhibition of intricately cut collages made from painted paper by Daniela Maria Gargiulo, inspired by her journeys through the Sussex landscape. The act of daily walking in all weathers and close observation of the world around her is central to Daniela’s practice. She is equally fascinated by the elemental drama of our coastline as she is by lonely buildings found in neglected suburban streets. Daniela’s work is characterised by an intuitive relationship to colour and texture. Through a process of elaborate cutting and gluing she meticulously builds each image layer by layer and piece by piece. Her art is an archive of resonant places, of buildings that hold memories and ideas of the past, and sites of both hope and ruin.

Rock Paper Scissors depicts a contemporary vernacular landscape of loss and longing, recovery and renewal, of insight and revelation. We see the seasonally shifting moods of Galley Hill; the technological ruins of the Sound Mirrors at Denge; and the suburban oasis of Brooklands Park, Lancing. Abandoned factories rub shoulders with Romantic castles, Martello towers with abundant wild flower meadows. These are places of quietly contained energy, of an uncanny battle between solid stone and unruly nature, under unsettled skies. With their otherworldly colour palettes, Daniela’s exquisite images are both a blissful celebration of the ordinary and a restless search for an enigmatic idea of home.

Artist’s Statement

“I’m a British artist, born in the Black Country to working-class migrant parents, now living and working in Bexhill-on-Sea. I took a BTEC in Art and Design at Stourbridge College of Art in the 1980s then studied BA Fashion/Textiles at Middlesex Polytechnic before going on to work in magazine publishing. Interested in avant-garde music, I became a director of London Musicians’ Collective, programming its annual festival at South Bank Centre and helping launch London’s arts-focused radio station Resonance FM. Moving to Sussex twenty-five years ago, and following the birth of my daughter, I set up the craft label and dressmaking blog Ivy Arch. At the age of 50, I took Maggie Tredwell’s Painting and Drawing adult education course at Northbrook College, Worthing. This provided the impetus for me to establish a daily practice and commit to making art on my own terms.”

Instagram: @danielagallery