Fabulous Hand Painting Art By Mario Mariotti

Though we sometimes forget, art doesn’t have to be sophisticated, or grand, or expensively made. Never was this more apparent than with the life’s work of the late Italian composer-turned-artist Mario Mariotti (1936–1997), who turned away from his considerable music career to make simplistic art on the most readily available medium: his hands.

h/t: vintag.es

With nothing more than thick oil paints and the occasional simple prop, Mariotti transformed his hair-covered hands into a plethora of creative human and animal figures. His imagination is as surprising as it is wholesome.

“Use our ideas as springboards for your own creativity,” said Mariotti. “Take water-based paint—dip it, daub it, brush it on … Play with your hand and the materials. From your play there will arise a new world. Step into it.”

Mario Mariotti with his daughter Francesca