"I work with the medium of collage, using recycled and found materials.
I enjoy cruising through second-hand shops' shelves and street libraries, searching for books and magazines, ephemera or other types of paper to use in my collages.
The composition process always starts with a figurative subject or a small group of images which I feel are related to each other.
From a figurative foundation I then continue by adding paper layers, juxtaposing textures, tones and fragments to create a whole that feels complex yet simplified to its essence and that acquires a stronger abstract and lyric nature as the work progresses.
The subjects I seek, often presenting a narrative quality, are evocative of a story that feels at the same time intimate and universal.
Related to historical and social themes that blend the boundaries between past and present, permanent and temporary, personal and political, they are a statement to the continuity of human existence.
My work acts as a mirror that allows me to look into my identity and feelings while also bringing new purpose to images that would otherwise go unnoticed.
I aim to highlight the connections that exist between my own experience and others' and I always felt that collage was the perfect medium to establish this dialogue."
- Anna De Leidi