Ligama on street art, Catania, and the pandemic

In an interview with Artribune, street artist Ligama discusses his practice, his relationship with Catania, and the impact of the pandemic. He explains that his shift from canvas to walls was driven by boredom and a desire to interact with space and architecture. After living in Catania for over a decade, he opened a studio in the San Berillo district in 2017 with fellow artists Gue and Gabel. He describes the area as a melting pot of ethnicities and social classes. Regarding the pandemic's effect on street art, he hopes it won't devolve into advertising slogans or facile commemorations, which he believes undermine urban art's intellectual level. He notes that artists are accustomed to solitude and reflection, and that the lockdown period reinforced the value of time. Ligama emphasizes that his work is inspired by the stories of the places where his murals are located, aiming to create relationships and identity through painting. He uses quartz paint and occasionally spray. He defines street art as something between graffiti and public art, preferring to simply call it painting. He sees graffiti as the greatest artistic revolution of the last forty years, driven by pure gesture and instinct. The central theme of his research is balance—between forms, message and execution, space and painting, abstract and concrete. He avoids making future plans despite organizational necessities.