Opiemme, an Italian fine artist took his latest project to the streets this summer. “Journey through Painting and Poetry” was the name of the project. Opiemme took part in the project to share the poetry that he loves. The sites for the poetry-inscribed artwork were strategically chosen, and span across Italy from North to South. Opiemme collaborated with galleries and the city of Turin to find audiences that would appreciate the work that he created in the particular sites. His works include verse from poets that are local to some areas, lyrics from a System of a Down song floating around a giant panda, a painting of jazz musician Louis Armstrong, and the Raven. The city of Turin also allowed Opiemme to create his “River of Words” on public pavement. Covering seven kilometers, the literary torrent is expressed in Italian.
The Raven
In Torina, Opiemme created a depiction of a raven on the wall, then used stencils to strategically place the words to “The Raven”, by Edgar Allen Poe inside the outline of the raven. The result is incredibly clever. Words have long been used to create art by graffiti artists, but Opiemme takes it to another level. Opiemme often uses his work to touch on social matters, and is no stranger to both gallery art and street art.