Luisa Barbano
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Luisa Barbano is a Phoenixville-based illustrator working primarily with ink. In the wake of a catalytic uprooting two years ago, Luisa first took up her art practice as a method of personal restoration and reinvention, a task befitting her new hometown’s namesake. Her body of work is the product of a vigorous healing process aided by a well-fed imagination, and her pieces are as varied as the whims of a mind freshly freed. Whether creating for herself or for others, Luisa imbues each of her pieces with a unifying, heartfelt intention, knowing that regardless of the artistic subject, the simple act of mark-making has transformative power both within the self and in the greater universe. Luisa chooses ink because of its tendency for blots and its innate permanence, which she finds oddly profound. When not putting nib to paper, she gathers inspiration by reading books, watching films, and listening to her radio; she takes equal inspiration—and great joy—in interacting with the other unique humans whose lives brush hers.
Pro Arte
“Aut viam inveniam aut faciam” : Either I will find a way, or make one... What part of my life, what small facet has my illness not touched? My art is no exception. Two years ago, I was placed in a psychiatric hospital, and in an act of self-preservation, I established the practice of creating one sketch a day. At the end of my stay, I had a makeshift portfolio and the opportunity for an apartment in Phoenixville, an aptly named town in which I could recover and rise. Since then, the darkness that had once clouded my mind has dissipated, revealing great imagination and insight, though images of the darker days sometimes pervade my work. The monsters in this piece are figures that have plagued me when I was ill in the past, appearing in long-gone moments of riddled psychosis. In my art, I have tamed them with the power of the pen, and I have caged them with ink; I have the power to overcome the devastating challenges of my past. The Latin phrase is one I have always carried with me and is one that I often repeated in my hospitalization. Now, on the other side, I can proudly confirm that I have both found my way and will forge one going forward, accomplishing a life for myself I never could have dreamed was possible.
Ink (black, red, gold) on mixed media paper
