Ninni Pagano (1969) - Corazza di seta

Ninni Pagano was born in Catania, always passionate about Wunderkammer and everything nature offers in its beauty. This passion led him to study under master Antonio Sciacca, his teacher. It was 2011, and from that moment his artistic career began, increasingly rising in prominence and earning the esteem of critics such as Aldo Albani, Roberta Filippi of the Orler gallery, Philippe Daverio, and Daniele Radini Tedeschi. In 2016 his name appears in the prestigious American guide Guide Museums Galleries Artists. After participating in two Triennials of contemporary art in Rome with his works published in Mondadori catalogs, in 2020 his name appears in the prestigious Atlas of Contemporary Art by De Agostini.
The work is an oil on canvas, signed and accompanied by a certificate of authenticity with the artist’s logo, characteristics of the work, and the artist’s signature at the bottom. The colors of the painting may vary slightly from the photo due to camera settings and screen. The work is carefully packaged with bubble wrap and cardboard, and is naturally shipped with a frame.

Silk Armor
To look at this work means entering the poetic world of Ninni Pagano, immersing oneself in an aesthetics that the artist often defines as a dialogue between the classical past and an ancestral future. The very title, “Silk Armor,” perfectly embodies Pagano’s vision. The female figure appears wrapped in an imposing structure of collars and ornaments that recall geological strata or ancient armors. However, this “armor” does not communicate war, but protection and sacredness. The woman’s skin and her absorbed gaze retain the softness of silk, creating a balance between the hardness of the jewel-sculpture and the vulnerability of the human being.
In Pagano’s works, the animal element (in this case the armadillo) is not a mere decoration, but a doppelgänger or a guiding spirit.
The Armadillo: With its plated shell, it visually echoes the pattern of the jewelry worn by the woman. It represents the ability to withdraw into oneself to protect one’s inner self.
There is a continuity of color and material, a symbiosis between the creature and the human; they seem made of the same “stardust” or primordial clay, underscoring the spiritual theme of returning to nature.
The use of chiaroscuro is a hallmark of the artist. The dark background, almost devoid of details, serves to isolate the subject in a dimension outside time (atemporal). Light touches the face with a delicacy reminiscent of Flemish or Renaissance painting, giving the woman an aura of austere nobility. It is an art of silence: the work does not “shout,” but invites contemplation.
For Pagano, ornament is ritual. The strings of pearls and rigid fabrics are not “fashion,” but symbols of belonging to an imaginary, noble, and proud civilization. The red crown, almost a regal crest, lifts the figure to a kind of deity or priestess of a forgotten cult.

Conclusion
In “Silk Armor,” Ninni Pagano explores the resilience of beauty. The work tells us that we can be strong and protected (the armor) without losing our grace and our spiritual essence (the silk). It is an ode to the dignity of being, where the human and the natural coexist in a solemn, protective embrace.

Instagram: @ninnipagano