One may be able to think and create abstractly, and there is something to admire in that fact. Translating your singular, refracted vision into a 400-square meter mural in a way that supercharges the architecture, the immediate built environment, and the minds of passersby – that requires serious muscle, self-discipline, and a deep commitment.

The Turin-based illustrator and muralist came to Bologna for the local Park Life project – a multi-faceted arts and culture network of festivals geared toward the Millenial and Gen Z demographic – and decided that his theme would be “Carosel” (carousel). In it, he appears to be referencing his own bemused observation of arts, science, pop, and humanities culture from the perspective of an artist who has done a substantial quantity of traveling over these past years.

“Carosel presents a large floating urban agglomeration with intersected architectural volumes that want to give the idea of abstract landscapes but at the same time recall some existing cities,” he tells us. This interpretive lens allows us to read his visual diary if you will.

It also is meant to speak to the diverse audience who comprise the Bologna metropolitan area of about a million people that is home to the world’s oldest university. Of great significance to Etnik’s “Carosel”, it also is home to many immigrant groups and 150 nationalities.

“Bologna is inhabited by people of different ethnic backgrounds, and therefore the artist’s game includes proposing multi-ethnic architecture, textures, and details,” he says. During his creative process, Etnik tells us that he hopes to engage with the viewer emotionally through his intermixing of elements, references, and considered tonality.

“The wall is immersive thanks to the grandeur of the central block that invites the viewer into the façade, making him feel part of it.”

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