24 Artists&Illustrators
INTERVIEW
my style was more cartoonish but
now it seems more realistic, I think.”
Antonio may have begun his career
as a street artist, but it is no surprise
that he admires the work of surrealist
artists such as Rene Magritte
and Salvador Dalí, as well as the
fantastical scenes of the Early
Netherlandish painter Hieronymus
Bosch. The young Spaniard was
particularly excited by the chance
to see works by the latter up close
while on a recent trip to Milan.
Like the work of his heroes,
Antonio manages to create a strong
sense of theatre in his paintings,
where imagination meets reality.
Magnificently realistic polar bears are
lifted by hot air balloons, Punch and
Judy theatres are suspended from the
branches of trees, and a beautifully
detailed blue whale dives out of the
chest of a toucan.
Written down, these scenes sound
nonsensical impossibilities, but the
paintings are beautifully crafted and
visually cohesive. They also boast
hidden depths that offer subtler
messages and symbolism designed
to make audiences think.
Big tops, glowing hearts,
doors opening into bodies, unicorns,
skulls, bells and bullseye targets are
recurring motifs in Antonio’s painting.
If they feel childlike, it’s because the
artist admits he approaches his work
by looking as if through the eyes of a
child so that there is seemingly an
innocence and purity about the
scenes. But underneath these
I paint
animals who
are either
extinct or
in danger of
extinction... I
use bullseyes
to represent
the threat