Angelo Filomeno

Artist Angelo Filomeno makes embroideries, beautiful art embroideries, sometimes with semi-precious stones and crystals.

Filomeno “paints” large swatches of shantung silk overlaid on canvas with a commercial sewing machine. And, where nearly microscopic detail is necessary—say, a tiny drop of blood, or a brain’s spongy eviscera—he stitches with his own hand. He’s been sewing since he was seven which either makes him very patient or very obsessed, or, most likely both. Because classic chiaroscuro is not available to him (due to the nature of his chosen material), Filomeno sometimes twists his fabric 90 degrees to sew on the bias, revealing a more shiny, almost metallic version of that particular hue…

Gorgeous minute work of stitches and fabric and magic.

Works

Filomeno’s “paintings” are actually stitched with thread, with each detail painstakingly embroidered upon vibrantly colored silk shantung. For this exhibition, the artist gives us a series of large canvases that display his fascination with elemental issues like greed, sacrifice, birth, and death. Nature is the narrator, as birds, insects, plants, and bones come together in relationships that range from regal to perverse…