Green Furniture – Interview With a Local Artist

by Tina Ferrari

One wonderful thing about exploring your adopted city (or any city, really) is discovering its artistic life.  Lecce in particular is booming with creativity around every corner.  Since I set foot in this city, I’ve been surrounded by dancers like myself, singers, musicians, painters, sculptors… though Lecce has a population of less than a hundred thousand, it feels as big as Buenos Aires (14 million people) with all its cultural activity.  There is always something to see, something to do.

Avanzi exhibition

Walk down Via Palmieri in the historical center of Lecce and you will find a deconsecrated church that now hosts art exhibitions, such as the recent exhibition of Avanzi, a truly original furniture/home décor line designed by Lecce local Alessandra Bray.  Her eco-friendly pieces, made of the surprising elements of cardboard and leather, were on display for a week at the church of San Giovanni di Dio, and tourists and locals alike were able to stop in and chat with Ms. Bray about her creations – and even touch their soft leather.  Since the best way to get to know a city is by conversing with its people, I used the opportunity to chat with her and learn more about Avanzi and what inspired the birth of such a line.

Why cardboard and leather?

“I’ve always loved leather and appreciate the delicate beauty of cardboard,” says Bray, “particularly how something as durable as leather protects the fragile cardboard.”  She hadn’t originally considered giving her pieces an eco-friendly aim, but in essence, that’s what it is.  She continues to say that she was inspired by the thought of “creating – building – with the materials that are available nearby.”  To me, this is truly eco-friendly.  Nothing specially ordered and shipped by plane from across the world; Bray uses material that she gets locally.

Salento, the creative land

"Ra" lamp

As I’ve said before, I find this city to be absolutely rich with creativity.  I asked Ms. Bray why this area in particular is so full of artists.  “We are children of the taranta,” is her answer.  What is the taranta?  It is a spider from this region with a particularly venomous bite.  When bitten, its venom practically possesses you to the point of causing you to hallucinate and shake.  The local folk dance, the pizzica, was born of this legend. Bray goes on to explain that the people here basically tremble with creativity – they’ve been “bitten”, and the act of constantly expressing and creating is the antidote for the venom.  Don’t worry though, you probably won’t meet such a spider here in the city of Lecce –  historically its victims have been those who work in the fields.

"Open" shelf

Are there traces of this incredible land in Bray’s work?  “Absolutely.  The land can be found within the lines of each piece I create.”  She explains that this region is flat and if you look at the architecture, particularly the famous Leccese Baroque buildings, it’s an example of  a need to fill in the lines. “It’s horror vacui, which is Latin for the fear of empty spaces,” she explains.  While I find this land far from empty, I think it’s true what she says – there is constant creation – art, architecture, music, dance – and perhaps part of the inspiration is in the flat land which serves as a blank slate.  There is no empty space in Bray’s work;  it is rich and full.

Lecce, the creative city for foreigners

I’m not from here, yet I too feel constantly inspired to create.  I asked Bray if people from the outside find that it’s easy to live a creative life here.  “Yes,” she says, “this is a city that envelops you, and once you truly discover it, it doesn’t let you go.”

She is right.  This city has taken a hold of me and is not letting me go.

If you would like to learn more about Alessandra Bray and Avanzi, you can visit her website at www.avanzi.mobi.  If you can read Italian, her recent exhibition has also been featured in a local online magazine, Lecce Prima.

Tina Ferrari is a tango dancer, translator and writer currently based in Lecce, Italy. She writes at AffordableCallingCards.net as well as on her own blog, Tina Tangos. Comments are always welcome!