Interview by Ania Navas.
Victoria Belmondi, PhD in medicine, surgeon, specialist in liver surgery, but also a very talented artist: painter and sculptor.
Ania Navas: Victoria, you have many talents. What is more important in your life, medicine or art?
Medicine and art are two different fields, so it is not easy to compare and assess them directly. For me the most important has always been the human being and his or her life. Life is the most important value in our stay on Earth. Our existence here and now, on the most beautiful planet in the Universe, is connected with having a soul and a body. We as human beings possessing such gifts from the Creator – the soul and the body should take care of both of those gifts. That means we should take care of our physical and mental health. We should have the feeling that we develop also our intellect and emotions. Medicine and art fulfil such a role. In my opinion they are inseparable.
I am very happy that I represent both medicine and art, and I can help people using my skills as a surgeon and as a painter, with my wide-open heart. I deeply believe that through my systematic work and creative activity I can give them pearls of happiness and in very difficult or helpless situations, I can be close to them and instill the hope of a better future.
Ania: You have been living in Warsaw for years. Does your surname Belmondi demonstrate your Italian roots or is it just your artistic pseudonym?
Victoria: Victoria Belmondi is my artistic pseudonym. It means The Victory (Victoria) of Beautiful (Bellle) Worlds (Mondi). In my opinion, beauty is always connected with kindness. As everyone I still expect the final victory of right over wrong, and I want to live in a beautiful world full of kind people. I have been waiting for a change of our planet into a paradise. Someone can say: „it is a Utopia”, however, I claim that everything depends on us – the inhabitants of this unusual and unique planet. I am sure that we can do it together.
I am closely connected to Italy. I used to live there and work in a clinic in Milan for some time. I know that country as well as my beloved mother country, Poland. Poland has always had the most important place in my heart. Yet, every year I visit different regions of Italy. Italy is the real treasury of the world’s culture. The fact that I have chosen Italian language for my artistic pseudonym was not accidental.
Carnival (2020), acrylic technique on canvas, 150x130cm.
Ania: As a talented painter, sculptor and graphic designer you became a member of the Association of the Polish Artists in the Warsaw area. Back in 2018, you took part in ten exhibitions including the Exhibition in European Parliament, in the House of the Polish Artists, and in the European Centre of Culture. Where can we see your works of art at present?
Victoria: In the year 2020 we have been surprised by the pandemic of COVID-19. The mortality rate is at the highest level in well-developed countries. We used to presume that in such countries we had everything under control, particularly any infections and poisonings. The invasion of coronavirus has disturbed the economies of well-developed countries. That situation has also influenced areas of economy connected with art. For many months the art galleries have been closed. Even now, after a few months, many exhibitions are being postponed. I hope that my works will be available in the exhibition of August 2020, in the Gallery of the Association of the Polish Artists DAB, in Warsaw. I have also been preparing two big exhibitions. One of them is entitled: The Victory of Life, and another one is about women under the Italian title La donna e mobile.
We, artists, create for other people. Without the public, art does not exist. We, artists, go through the same anxieties and hopes as other people do. We, painters, speak with the world through our works. This is our way of conducting our dialogue with the world. In the autumn I will take part in the biggest exhibition of graphic designers in Poland of the year – "Grafiteka 2020". Then, I am going to take part in the exhibition of a prestigious group of artist – “Positive Art” – of which I am a member. I am also going to take part in the annual exhibition of the Polish Society of Graphic Artists. The title of the exhibition is: "Next to us".
My Beautiful Delicate World (2020), acrylic technique on canvas, 150x130cm.
Ania: What is your inspiration when you create your works?
Victoria: For me, the biggest inspiration are people. During my life, I have met thousands of people. I do my best to help those who I meet in my life. If I can’t help them, I try to give them a gift of hope. Every human being is different and perceives our world in a different way, but all of us have goodness and real beauty deep in our hearts. Beauty coming out from the heart, not from the appearance.
My another inspiration is life that surprises us at every moment. Life expects from us so much, that sometimes we have an impression that we have become helpless like children. Future is mysterious, like black night, but after the night, the sun always rises and uncovers a more beautiful world.
My art has always been optimistic. My art always gives hope. Nature gives us a full palette of colors, and such colors I use in my art.
Victory (2020), acrylic technique on canvas, 180x130cm.
Ania: Is there a possibility to see or to buy your works of art online?
Victoria: Yes, of course. People can see my works of art on films and in TV relations from exhibitions, and on Instagram. Sales are being run by managers, who cooperate with modern art auction houses. Of course, the Web is a big bag of art, but the real contact with art begins when you see an original piece. I am an incurable optimist and a dreamer. I dream about big exhibitions in the USA and Canada, where I would be able to meet wonderful people, and their experiences, memories, feelings, and dilemmas will inspire me to creative activity in the future.
My painting "Victory" will take part in worldwide contest of art in Luxembourg – the Luxembourg Art Prize. The painting presents the victory of life over death in times of the pandemic of COVID-19. My creative activity consists of many thematic series. Each series consists of 5 to 15 paintings. All interested in my works, please contact me online, via the e-mail address: arteraplus@gmail.com.
