Telese’s painting practice focuses on the relationship between human beings and their inner self, expressed and reflected in their natural surroundings. She employs Italian Renaissance techniques from the XV Century such as unione and sfumato, first used by Raffaello Sanzio and Leonardo Da Vinci, whilst maintaining a constant formal and conceptual dialogue with XXI Century aesthetics and visual culture. Her paintings are made over a months-long layering process, using hand-milled pigment oil paints, and are made to last hundreds of years.
Telese’s current series of works, ‘Inner Strength,’ depicts significant people within her life in Iceland, shown with objects or in environments dear to them. The works also relate to Telese’s performance practice, catching her subjects in actions or poses emerging from long-term dialogue with them.
Emilia Telese 