ARCADIA (2018-2021) was born from a sincere and engaging human and artistic exchange between the author and Stefano Filipponi, an Italian singer-songwriter and performer. Through an existential study, the work aims to significantly deepen the fascinating and complex world that lives within the protagonist: what emerged was an incandescent and multifaceted spirit that comes to life in its artistic form, called Arcadia.
This encounter has triggered the desire to create the so-called Gesamtkunstwerk, or rather, a total work of art composed of an artist’s book and a short documentary about the human and artistic Stefano’s life path, made up of inner struggles due to the stuttering that has had a significant impact on his artistic and personal sphere.
Between theatricality and sequins, Arcadia transformed Stefano’s shadows into light, performing in a macrocosm between desire and fantasy, where the Feminine and the Masculine, and what is in between and beyond them, intersect sensibly with each other.
The intertwining of these two essences enhance self-determination and the importance of vulnerability as a peculiar human characteristic.
Stefano’s vulnerability became a strong and bright spark of life: a Camp burning space for re-imagination, resistance and active rivendication of his own subjectivity. Potential destinies and new narratives are born inside this dimension, where Stefano and Arcadia can inevitably be One and the Other, be One and be Multiple, through the power of music, performance and art.
ARCADIA celebrates self-expression, kindness and empathy, but most of all it’s about being sensitive to one’s own queerness which finds the strongest means to assert itself in bravery and identity.
ABOUT ANTONIO MIUCCI
Raised in Southern Italy, Antonio Miucci (1994) is an Italian visual artist and fashion photographer, he lives and works in Milan. He holds a MFA in Photography and Visual Arts and a BFA in Arts and New Media Studies, both from Brera Fine Arts Academy.
His research in art and photography deal with the themes of Queerness, celebrating self-expression, bravery, vulnerability, beauty, human brightness and darkness.
Through the use of visual arts mixing with portrait and fashion photography, as well as the conscious use of vibrant colours, the willingness of the author is to create evocative and layered imaginaries, whose intention is to redefine the perception about gender and personal identity in contemporary society, specifically deconstructing visual and cultural stereotypes about masculinity.
His works have been exhibited in Italy and abroad for several prizes and group shows (Prix Picto de La Mode, Palm Photo Prize 2020, Artissima & GQ Italia, Cardi Gallery, Voies Off, Triennale Design Museum, Fondazione Meravigli) and published in several international art and photography books and magazines (Der Greif, Fresh Eyes, Young Photographers from Italian Academies by Ragusa FotoFestival, Witness, GQ Italia, Rolling Stone, Vogue Italia, The Collector, A Part Magazine, Perimetro).
Photography by Antonio Miucci / www.antoniomiucci.com / Instagram: @antoniomiucci
Graphic Design / Art Direction by Antonio Miucci and Stefano Filipponi / Instagram: @stefanofilipponi
Model is Stefano Filipponi, Arcadia / Instagram: @stefanofilipponi @arcadia_queen
Styling by Stefano Filipponi, Arcadia, Fabio Messana / Instagram: @stefanofilipponi @arcadia_queen @fabiomessana
Make up and hair by Arcadia, Stefano Filipponi, Mattia Attorre / Instagram: @arcadia_queen @stefanofilipponi @piangoarcobaleni
All wigs by Marcoswigs / www.marcoswigs.com / Instagram: @marcoswigs
FASHION
Most of the clothes are vintage/custom-made/archive except for four looks attached in the next page.
The brands used in that are COS @cosstores / Acne Studios @acnestudios / Gucci Vintage / Viktor and Rolf Haute Couture @viktorandrolf
