Interview by Jimon

1-Where do you currently live and create?  I live between Toronto and Florence.

2-What is your earliest childhood memory of making art?  My earliest memory of art was the art show in the last year of kindergarten. All the drawings were exhibited on the wall in a line, and my mom was looking and expecting my work to be the best artwork, but as she kept looking and looking she couldn’t find it. Surprised, she asked the teacher where my piece was, and the teacher, with a very serious expression, pointed at the last piece of paper which had a few holes on it due to the strong rubbing of the marker on the same spot. I think my mom knew at that moment that I wasn’t going to become a doctor or lawyer.

3-What did your path to becoming an artist look like?  It’s a long journey everyday is a new chance to get better and redeem yourself. It’s a series of moments where you see infinite possibilities.

4-Did you study art or is it inherent?  I studied it but that helped me just to awaken what I had already inside.

5-How would you describe Jason Balducci?  I’m calm but sociable guy who likes to establish genuine relationships with people. I’m an observer, curious and hungry for new ways of celebrating life.

6-Is there any reality behind the characters in your paintings?  Reality is just a fiction of the mind. I prefer to leave some mystery behind my characters, let them tell their stories.

7-What emotion do you expect to be on people’s faces when they look at your art?  One of the great joys of creating art is being able to share it with other people. If you can create work that moves people it is there when your work resonates with another person and you are building a bond with them. For me, it is wonderful to connect with people through my work, when people respond to a painting and really ‘feel’ it.

8-Do you have motto on how to live life?  “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them” -Walt Disney

9- What influences you as an artist?  I love combining colours in unusual ways, and the act of simply playing with them, whether it’s on a canvas with paint or on my computer screen, inspires a lot of ideas for me. I have also learned that my best work comes when I don’t really care about the outcome, when I am just messing around with the art supplies. True creativity requires a willingness to play with the raw materials, whether those materials are paint, words etc.

10-Do you have a place/person/thing that you visit for inspiration?  Music, movies, people, sleep, symmetry or asymmetry of objects, a bird singing, colours outside the lines, see things instead of just looking around. I look underneath the surface of what is seen, to find the places that are not seen but felt. The spaces and places that have no words.

11-When you are not painting where would someone find you?  At the art supply store 🙂 kidding. I think it is wise to find a balance between your practice and private life, especially if you have a partner, but sometimes one or the other demands more attention!

12-How do you describe success as an artist?  As an artist, the greatest gift you can give is sharing your work with others and starting a conversation with them. So this is an important truth: in order to feel successful you have to make a mark on canvas to open the door of possibility, to be moved profoundly and to move others. That is what success is all about. That is the heart and soul of my practice.

13-Name three things you can’t live without in your studio?  Music, Light, wifi

14-If you could have dinner with 3 artists living/dead who would be at your table?  De Kooning, Bacon , Basquiat

15-How would someone find you on Social media?  Instagram  @jasonbalducci.art

16-Please name the first thing that comes to your mind while reading the following:

Art= Freedom

Food=Pleasure

Sports=Joy

Politics=Circus

Poor=Humbleness

God=An Image

Rich=Desire

Luxury=Comfort

Sex=Need

Picasso=Art

Religion=A fairy tale