Stella Papa

Your portraits are described as “human forms of emotions.” How do you choose which emotion to paint next?

My paintings are my feelings calendar, it reflects my strongest feelings. But sometimes my paintings reflect the feelings of the other people who is connected emotionally with me.

What role does color — especially gold, silver, and black — play in conveying you?

Colours and their combinations play the most important role in the creation of a painting and in my attempt to give human form to emotions. Gold is a bright and flexible colour. Gold sometimes has been transformed into a warm and peaceful and sometimes has been transformed into an intense based on its combination with other colours. The above characteristics of gold are reminiscent of the human behaviour. Human emotions resemble the colour gold. Human behaviours are flexible, change rapidly and “transform” depending on the time, place and company. Silver is different, it is a metallic, durable and has been used by people to protect surfaces. So, as an artist, I use silver because it help me to express the “hurt and strange” behaviour of the people, silver is resemble the mask that is been wear by people every day, to prevent others from seeing their emotions and to protect their emotions from the harsh behaviours of other people. Usually, I use black to create contrast and make the painting look three-dimensional.

Stella Papa | Optimism | 2024

You often depict men in your portraits, noting they have more expressive faces. Can you elaborate on what you see in their expressions?

Men rarely express their feelings in words. I believe that every man’s body language, eyes and facial expressions are the mirror of his thoughts, feelings and concerns which he cannot express in a simple sentence.

How does your background in finance influence your creative process, if at all?

My background in economics helps me to find the answers to the problems of division, multiplication of the humans emotions and thoughts with my acrylics, charcoals and my artistic intuition which are   giving human form to those problems that the mind, soul and heart cannot solve with arithmetic operations.

Stella Papa | The eagle’s | 2025

You’ve exhibited internationally, including Times Square and the Louvre. Which exhibition has been most personally meaningful to you, and why?

All my international exhibitions are important, each for its own reasons. For example, the exhibition at the Carrousel de Louvre was precious because my artwork is exhibited in one of the most famous museums in the world in which art is the protagonist. The projections of my paintings in Time Square and the Gracia metro station in Barcelona were specials and unique because they were held in places where thousands of people cross every day, and they are “collecting” images of what they see around.

Many of your works explore the conflict between darkness and hope. What draws you to this emotional duality?

The life and artistic career of an artist is full of contrasts and conflicting emotions. The artist, while is happy, suddenly becomes sad, sometimes is a dreamer and optimist and sometimes pessimistic from the cruelty society. All these changes of emotions and the strange things of the world inspire me and they ‘awaken’ my imagination

Stella Papa | Unlimited love | 2024

You’ve been awarded and recognized globally. How do you stay connected to your artistic intuition while navigating success?

I believe that my asymmetric and strange artistic intuition is give me the awards and the global recognition, so I cannot be unconnected from it.  My Intuition in art is rooted in emotions which arise from my inner experience. My artistic intuition is my source of inspiration which has been guiding my personal choices and helps me to stay connect to the creative process and to imagine new art projects without to change my unique style and technique which is generate from my inner world. Noone awards can reconnect me from my inner artistic’ s imagination and creativity.