What passion drives you, inspires you or motivates you?
The main passion is for my work, doing things, being creative; by creativity I don't just mean making a "thing" but also a method for finding solutions, finding ideas, perceiving and transforming them. I also find it stimulating to work towards objectives where each goal aims to create something that goes beyond oneself, which has a collective reason and, to use an improper term, which has an "ethical" goal. In addition the person that held this post before me, namely Laura Cretara, left me a powerful and important moral legacy.
The relationship between the technique of the hand and the creativity of the mind is increasingly difficult to handle. How do you help students tackling this issue?
First of all the School's students are encouraged to study the "grammar" of art, i.e. the artistic technique in its very essence, in its practice. From the outset time is dedicated to "copying" antique works, so that they have an artistic and technical reference point. Work is done on examples of the history of art, and on items from the Mint's historical heritage as well as that of our Museum. Subsequently work starts on projects. For each technique and activity, the student is encouraged to make his or her own creative design, making the complete "work", right down to the prototype or the unique object. Our aim is not to train up operators but fully-fledged artists and artisans with creative and designing skills.
In addition our School, which is located on the Mint's premises, contributes towards the manufacturing activities of the factory with designs, drafts and prototypes of medals and artistic objects.
Is Rome's Medal Art School open to the new technologies? Are they introduced from the early years, or only after students have acquired steadier manual skills?
The relationship with graphic composition and 3D digital modelling techniques accompanies pupils throughout all three years of the course. The computer is placed alongside manual techniques, so that the right kind of relationship between technology, art and production is fostered. We view digital technologies as a tool, as important as modelling tools such as chisels. Technology does not eradicate manual skills as it cannot substitute the hand. It is used for attaining other goals; work is optimised and it is a useful tool for creativity.