Luca Masselli's "Spirit": Contemporary Italian Abstract Painting Between Instinct and Vision
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- 3 days ago
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“ Spirit ” by Luca Masselli represents one of the most evocative expressions of contemporary Italian abstract painting , capable of blending chromatic energy and emotional introspection. Created with mixed media on canvas in the dimensions 50x70 cm , the work stands out for its visual power and its ability to translate the essence of animal movement into symbolic and spiritual language.
The subject – an orange and white cheetah , crossed by an almost ethereal dynamism – is not a simple figurative representation, but the visual transposition of an inner strength that runs beyond matter , a vital impulse that becomes a metaphor for the soul itself. “Spirit” is, in fact, more than a title: it is the declaration of an artistic intention that looks beyond form to explore the vibration of color, the tension of the sign and the freedom of the creative mind.

The Work: Primordial Energy in Contemporary Italian Abstract Painting
In “ Spirit ,” Luca Masselli explores the boundary between figuration and abstraction. The figure of the cheetah emerges from a web of bubbles, drips, and chromatic transparencies , where the pictorial material becomes a vehicle for emotion.
The orange and white shades, alternating with breathing areas and dynamic contrasts, create a balance between instinctive power and spiritual harmony , evoking the dual nature of the animal and, by extension, of the human being: impulse and consciousness, speed and meditation.
This suspended dimension, oscillating between gesture and reflection, is typical of new-generation contemporary Italian abstract painting , where aesthetic research also becomes a philosophical investigation of perception and memory.

Luca Masselli: Vision, Roots, and Tuscan Spirit
Born in Figline Valdarno , Tuscany, Luca Masselli lives and works in a land deeply linked to the art and history of the Renaissance.
As he himself explains, his artistic journey was born from an early passion for drawing and graphics, which matured amidst fantastic inspirations and references to Tuscan culture .
Although he did not attend an academic art school, he studied painting with Massimo Callossi and Elisa Brunello , masters of the Florentine area, refining a personal technique that combines formal rigor and expressive freedom.
At the same time, her training in dance, singing and scenography at the BSMT in Bologna enriched her artistic vision with a strong theatrical and performative sense, evident in her pictorial gestures and in the construction of her compositions, which are always dynamic and rhythmic.
His work is born from a constant dialogue between reality and imagination , between visual memory and emotional resonance : in his works one perceives the desire to make visible what is invisible, to give shape to the vibration of a memory or the silhouette of a thought.
The Pictorial Language: When Color Becomes Soul
In Luca Masselli 's painting, matter is always the protagonist. The use of mixed media on canvas —alternating acrylics, enamels, and layered pigments—allows the artist to create tactile depths and symbolic overlays .
Every brushstroke is an emotional gesture, every mark a fragment of energy.
The work “ Spirit ” is a perfect example: the surface vibrates, as if crossed by an inner light that seems to emerge from the very depths of the color. In this contemporary Italian abstract painting , Masselli demonstrates how formal research can coexist with expressive urgency : his language does not describe, but evokes; it does not represent, but suggests.
Context and Poetics: The Spirit of Contemporary Italian Painting
Masselli's work fits into an artistic landscape where contemporary Italian abstraction reclaims the centrality of gesture and symbol . From the Informal experiences of the late twentieth century to current trends in emotional and gestural painting , the Tuscan artist collects and renews a legacy that extends from Afro and Vedova to the protagonists of European lyrical abstraction.
His painting is never detached from reality: as in the best Italian tradition, it is rooted in matter and memory , but oriented towards the spirituality of the sign . "Spirit" thus becomes a manifesto-work, a poetic declaration that speaks of the bond between man and nature, between instinct and vision, between roots and the future.

Conclusion: “Spirit”, a Symbol of Contemporary Italian Abstract Painting
Luca Masselli 's " Spirit " is a prime example of how contemporary Italian abstract painting can still speak to the viewer's heart, blending the power of gesture with profound thought. The work does not depict an animal, but the very idea of vitality , freedom, and connection with essence. Through intense colors, dynamic textures, and a language suspended between figuration and abstraction, Masselli builds a bridge between the visible and invisible worlds , between matter and spirit.
With “Spirit”, the Tuscan artist invites us to look beyond the image , to seek, in the silence of colour, the most authentic beat of the soul.




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