Agim Sulaj, 1960 | Surreal satirical illustrator

Born in Valona, Agim Sulaj, is an Albanian painter, living in Rimini, Italy since 1990 and having Italian citizenship.

After high school, in 1978 Agim Sulaj entered the Tirana Academy des Baux Artes, and completed his studies at the Fine Arts Academy of Tirana in 1985.

As a painter, he started working in the political and satirical magazine Hosteni, producing illustrations and caricatures.

Selene Salvi, 1976 | Parthenopean painter

Italian painter Selene Salvi was born in Naples in 1976.

After graduating from university with a degree in philosophy, she began her artistic studies in the studio of the realist Neapolitan painter Fulvio De Marinis, through the time-honored ritual of copying the works of the masters.

Raffaello, Rubens, Caravaggio, de Ribera, Ingres, Bouguereau, and the 18th-century Neapolitan school became a solid base from which to launch her own original works and creative impulses.

Mario Mariotti | Handimals

The remarkable Italian artist Mario Mariotti (1936-1997) was a conceptual artist who transforms his hands into odd, fantastic creatures.

He can turn hands into almost anything.

His book "Animani" showcased a great variety of wild animals and birds -- all hands, adorned with a lot of paint, a few toothpicks, string and some button eyes.

Colours of Pompeii

The Roman world was a mass of colour - most clearly preserved in Pompeii.

In wealthy houses, mosaics, frescoes and marble panelling formed a multi-coloured backdrop to painted sculpture, terracotta objects and furniture - as well, of course, did textiles and soft furnishings.

Public temples and other monuments featured vibrant decorations, while the streets blazed with painted signs and adverts for shops, bars, and politicians.

Paris, 1925: Art Dèco gazzled the World / L'Art Déco abbagliò il mondo

Art Déco Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes - Esposizione internazionale delle arti decorativi ed industriali moderni, tenutasi a Parigi nel 1925 - e per quest'ultimo motivo noto anche come Stile 1925 - viene considerato un fenomeno del gusto che interessò sostanzialmente il secondo ed il terzo decennio del secolo XX: riguardò le arti decorative, le arti visive, l'architettura, la moda.

L'Expo parigina del 1925 vide trionfare, fra i molti espositori stranieri, la speciale raffinatezza francese in varie categorie merceologiche, dall'ebanisteria agli accessori di moda: Parigi restava il centro internazionale del buon gusto anche negli anni critici seguiti alla prima guerra mondiale.