Francesco Poiana, born in Italy in 1990, studied Painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome, then obtained a Master of Fine Arts at the Central Saint Martins in London and joined the Royal Drawing School in 2019. He lives and works between Italy and the UK.

He has been involved in numerous national and international projects and exhibitions including Campari Creates “N100” at the Estorick Collection, the 7th Guanlan International Print Biennal at the China Printmaking Museum, since 2019 participating with his work at the Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair. He is collaborating with the film production company Rover Dreams Productions and Designwork studios in Italy. His works on paper were recently exhibited by Christie’s and acquired in the Royal Collection. Since 2021 his work has been represented by Messums galleries.

Poiana’s practice is based around drawing, painting and printmaking and is usually concerned with landscape themes. The process often starts from an experience with particular qualities of light, memory and colour.

He says that drawing is the discipline he practices every day and in which he expresses himself best since he knows himself. The distance between drawing and printmaking has become short alongside the collaboration with the celebrated stamperia d’arte Albicocco in Italy, of whom he has been attending the edition studio since 2018.

“Using my hands, heart and mind I wish to construct a language with which one can convey their imagination and find solutions and escapes in different realities. In my work I always feel the need to chase a theme that I have not yet caught, that moves and keeps opening, expanding possibilities. In my urgency to create, I become lost and discover a new self.”

Poiana’s works represent an intimate voyage – towards the image of an intangible place, imagined only in daydreams.