Francesca is a British-Italian figurative artist who works mainly in oils but also uses egg tempera on gesso boards, soft pastels and charcoal.

She was born in 1959 into a close community of Italian immigrants in London. Her father was a descendant in a long tradition of craftspeople who originated from the beautiful Trentino region in the northern alps. Due to her mother’s illness she had an unsettled upbringing living between the two countries and, without a parental presence, this created a deep seated interest in themes of identity, nature and environment experienced from a feeling of not belonging to a place.

In Italy she frequented the ‘Istituto d’Arte’ where she studied Fine Art and Photography in Trento and Urbino obtaining a ‘Fine Arts Diploma’ (‘Diploma di Arti Decorative’). During this time she immersed herself in the arts and literature of Italy and travelled extensively to see the wonderful works of the Italian Masters. The influence of Italian art and culture can be see in her work especially in the egg tempera where she makes her own gesso boards, egg based paints and uses gilding.

Back in London she worked for a number of years with a couple of photographic studios: ‘Red Dragon’ and ‘Chrome’. Her interest in photography has influenced how she approaches composition and colour relationships and sometimes she uses photos to develop paintings.

She carried on exploring her painting and drawing through professional courses such as Illustration and Life Drawing at ‘St Martin’s School of Art’, as well as Airbrushing at the ‘London College of Printing’ and Portraiture at ‘Heatherlys School of Fine Art’ along with regular Life drawing sessions.

Francesca regularly participates in exhibitions in London, the UK and Italy. A notable experience was taking part in an exhibition complimentary to the conference ‘Art and Articulation’ at St Hilda’s College, Oxford which was exploring mysticism in art. She was on a panel with fellow artists to promote a discussion with the audience about their work. She has had drawings published in two Italian books of poems and has recently been involved in the making of a short film. During Covid she participated in the initiative ‘Portraits for Heroes’ and has been exhibiting in her studio with the local Merton Arts Trail on a regular basis.

Along with juggling work, then raising a family she has kept up a regular art practice. Over the past couple of decades, this has become full time at her Wimbledon studio where she also works on commissions.