1. Name and where you are from?
Hello! My name is Chiara and I’m an old Italian girl living in Ireland and fitting in just fine I might say.
2. How long have you been drawing/painting?
Two are the things I can’t remember: started loosing (every)thing and starting to draw. But one of my first remembrance as a child is to be in my grandma’s kitchen eating and drawing…boys, that was life!
3. What inspired you to make paintings/drawings?
Well, I think I could say that cartoons in my childhood and later Japanese comic books have been the reason why I attended an Art High School. A good kick start to draw each free moment in my life.
4. What are some of your favorite inspirations?
Sometimes I’d really love to have a precise source of inspiration or a path to follow in my creative moments. The truth is, I don’t have any. I read blogs, books, magazines, posters, advertisement, children’s books [ Yes, I like to read! :)] and some times ideas come out. Some times they don’t. They just love to do what they want, those brats!
5. How do you come up with new ideas for your artwork?
Since I reaaally love stories – everything from fairytales to mythology - I usually start my researches from one of them. For example, lately I discovered (but don’t ask me how, I seriously don’t remember it…) the “Metamorphosis” by Ovidio and started a series of watercolours about some of the characters.
6. How is your shop different from every other art selling Etsy shop?
There are a lot of colourful and beautiful shops out there, but you won’t find pure and bright colours that tell you a story as you can find at makissima!
Have a look at the list and say it yourself!
7. Do you sell on any other sites? If so what sites?
I recently started to sell a few black and white pieces on Fondelifair, a new website completely devoted to Ireland based artists and crafty people, and I must say I find it a little less dispersive than Etsy, maybe just because I love Irish people so I always feel at ease dealing with them (the United States seem so huge as a market!).
That’s the link, if you fancy to visit me there: makissima.craftblog.eu/?page_id=19
8. What are some of your favorite Etsy shops?
Ohohohoh! The most difficult question in the world! There is too many of them! To name but a few: “Meluseena”, a Cork based digital artist I admire a lot, “Damsel in this dress”, she makes gorgeous corsets and skirts and I like to dress up! For the same reason I can add to the list “topsyturvydesign” for hats and “MissVioletLace” for wigs. Then I love the sculptures in “EkaKaramelka” and “creaturesfromel”. I simply adore each pattern you can find in “thegoodewife”. Then there is “corid” and “majalin” and “tuesdaymourning” and “obsoleteworld” and “matyldabiedron” and…do you want me to continue? ;)
9. What are some of your other creative talents?
Inside the visual arts field I love to make collages, because it’s a technique that allows me to use pure and uniformed colours.
I also create small jewelry, mostly rings and pendants, out of wire and little beads, my favorites are the ones shaped like bugs such as butterflies and dragonflies. During winter I make scarves for me and my friends and in the future I’d like to try working with felt.
And of course, I’m Italian, so…cooking!
If I weren’t such a procrastinator I could have a bunch of different shops and – who knows - be rich!
10. Describe your art in one word.
Funny. I love the dark and weird atmospheres but apparently I’m still not able to pull them out of my works.
Here's some talented work from the artist!
