The personal exhibition "Tiliguerta" by the artist Tiziana Sanna at the Bartoli Felter Foundation in Cagliari

Monday, 28 September, 2020
mostra tiliguerta

The artist says:

"In this moment of my artistic production, after having painted jungle and savannah animals, mostly endangered species, I felt the urge to give a local connotation to my research, I want it to be indissolubly linked to the territory in which I am born and in which I have always lived: to paint the animals of my island, Sardinia.

In the last two years I have carried out research on typical and endemic Sardinian fauna species, I have studied their characteristics and the factors that have contributed to their development and conservation: the geographical isolation of our island, its conformation, its relative scarce anthropization compared to the extension of the territory, its ecological characteristics, its uncontaminated and wild aspect.

These species are usually found in restricted ranges and may be exclusive to Sardinia, or of Sardinian-Corsican derivation, or Tyrrhenian, depending on their genetic origin and distribution. The differential morphological characters, which frequently occur in the endemic species of the Sardinian fauna, are the smaller size compared to continental specimens and the remarkable rusticity.

For my research project I consulted texts, studied the various species and their characteristics, found a large amount of images, visited protected areas, forests, natural habitats, natural science museums.

At a later stage I began to bring back on the canvas the subjects that gradually struck me for their characteristics: the mouflon, the Sardinian deer, the wild boar, the Fonnese shepherd, the flamingos, the Tyrrhenian lizard, the griffon, the owl, the barn owl, the Sardinian nuragic spider, the Sardinian fox and others I intend to create: the Sardinian hyla, the Sardinian wild cat, the Sardinian hare, the albino donkey of Asinara, the Sardinian big ear.

The style I chose to use is the representation of the animal in a realistic and hyper-realistic way: the animal will be the only protagonist of the canvas, the background will be monochromatic in only two shades, black or light depending on the colors of the animal, the canvas will be large so that the viewer has the impression of really being in front of it. The animal will be portrayed from the front or from the side, full-length or just an enlargement of the muzzle or half-length, its gaze will be emphasized, mirror of the soul, which will reveal its character.

The high and arduous goal that I set myself with this work of mine is to pay homage to these wild and wonderful creatures, to celebrate them so that they transcend their earthly character and acquire almost sacred connotations ".