Nani Serrano

NANI SERRANO (Alcoi, 1967).
“Venus and Cupid,” 2014.
Acrylic on canvas.
Airbrush painting.
A certificate of authenticity will be provided upon the buyer’s request.
Measurements: 100 x 81 cm.
The painstaking detail we see in “Venus and Cupid” by Lambert Sustris—a painter influenced by the colorism of the Venetian school—is drastically neutralized in Nani Serrano’s canvas, inspired by that Renaissance painting, yet without the scene losing a single iota of its original sensuality. Nani omits the figure of Mars and minimizes Eros, reducing him to the scale of a toy—a touch that lends Love the capriciousness of a game of chance, thereby stripping it of the fatalism of destiny characteristic of Greco-Roman mythology. As is typical in her interpretations of historical paintings and classical myths, Serrano focuses on the female character, on her psychological portrayal or emotional depth, here tinged with melancholy. The soft clouds help set the mood. Venus’s elongated torso evokes Mannerist conventions and reminds us of the intellectual weight that the allegory of love (carnal versus spiritual) took on in the works of Mannerist artists such as Bronzino.
In her canvases from the series “Airbrush for Another Century,” Serrano offers a feminine perspective on the history of seduction as it was passed down to us by the great painters of the Gothic and Renaissance periods. Nani Serrano began her career as a graphic designer and commercial illustrator, later delving into the art of airbrushing, collage, and other media in which she prioritizes manual work, and through which she seeks to unite art and illustration. She has been featured in the catalog *Spanish Illustrators* (Lunwerg), which showcases the highlights of contemporary illustration. She has exhibited at the Agora 3 gallery (Sitges, 2012); Art Window (2012); Espace Cultural Ample (2011, 2010, 2009); Desig (2008); Expo_7 (2005); and La Guillotina (Valencia, 1999), among others. She explores the expressive possibilities of airbrush painting, a technique she masters with virtuosity. She uses it to create a dialogue between disciplines and languages—such as photography and historical painting—to reflect on representations of women in art and advertising.