Selle Royal has commissioned 25 leading comic artists, product designers, graphic illustrators and animators from across Europe and America to create an exclusive set of 25 saddle-based artworks.
The artworks follow five themes to raise awareness of key societal issues
and celebrate some international holidays: Valentines Day (14th February) / Women’s Day (8th March) / Earth Day (22nd April) / International Bike Day (11th May) / Children’s Day (1st June)
The theme Selle Royal gave me to illustrate was BIKE PASSION for the International Bike Day.
I tried to incorporate in my design all the objects a true bike passionate knows and perhaps needs and like. If you are really passionate about cycling and if you love your bike you probably know everything about it, where every bolt is placed and how to fix any mechanical problems.
Moreover my father is and my grandfather was huge cyclism fans and I used to watch all the big competitions, Le Tour de France and il Giro d’Italia when I was a child. That’s why I included also the “Maglia Rosa” and the “Maillot Jaune” in my design, because if you love cycling you probably also love the Grand Tours too.
Many thanks to Matteo Cuccato for having me as part of this project!
The German bike magazine Aktiv Radfahren asked me to answer some questions regarding my Saddle Design of Selle Royal UP Saddle Art Project and some more cycling-related things! The interview is published on the number 03-2016 (in German).
Anyway here you can read the translation in English:
What means “cycling” for you?
To me cycling means freedom. When you ride a bike it’s just you and the power of your legs. I love cycling, especially when the weather is nice and you can feel the breeze brush your hair.
What is the statement of your own design, what should it tell us?
The theme Selle Royal gave me to illustrate was BIKE PASSION. If you are really passionate about cycling and if you love your bike you probably know everything about it, where every bolt is placed and how to fix any mechanical problems. I tried to incorporate in my design all the objects a true bike passionate knows and perhaps needs and like.
How started your passion for bike?
My father is, and my grandfather was, huge cycling fans and I used to watch all the big competitions, Le Tour de France and il Giro d’Italia when I was a child. That’s why I included also the “Maglia Rosa” and the “Maillot Jaune” in my design, because if you love cycling you probably also love the Grand Tours too.
Do you ride a bike for yourself and which bike?
When I lived in Italy I used to bike to work every day with an old Graziella bike from the 50’s who belonged to my grandmother. I had also a mountain bike but I loved that old Graziella, because it was so easy to cycle, it had a basket for my bag and probably also for sentimental reasons.
Now I live in London and I use the tube, mainly because the traffic is heavy, especially during the rush hours and everyone drives on the wrong side for me! Moreover you read news about dead or injured cyclists almost every day in the papers, and to be honest I don’t know the streets very well, I always use an app to find directions when I have to walk from one place to another.
I miss using my bike and I hope I’ll be able to use it again, perhaps at least in the neighborhood where I live.
I miss using my bike and I hope I’ll be able to use it again, perhaps at least in the neighborhood where I live.
