Meet Rafaella Christoforou

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Sed ut perspiciatis unde.

We were lucky to catch up with Rafaella Christoforou recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Rafaella, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

My two Alfas of my life; My mum and my dad are my great supporters of my journey literally through tough, hard and blessing moments that I went through in my life and in my career as artist. My parents are the first humans they encourage me to follow my passion and my first love; Art, without questioning or commenting. And I am bringing this now, not only to your attention but to all the readers, parents, future parents etc to support the children’s decisions and to let them decide for themselves (…) Art itself is not just a word, not just a field is a way of living and many more. With art you can do anything and the possibilities an artist can have are endless, Art is everywhere. Personally I wouldn’t ask for anything more, I am thankful for the strongest woman I have in my life and I have ever met, my mother and the kindest and supporting father I have. My Alfas are the people who always love, believe, care, hug me, laugh, cry with me through all of my ups and downs in my life from my early childhood year since today. I wouldn’t be the woman I am today without them, my mother is intelligent, tough but so honest with me and my twin brothers, she taught us the hard way, to never give up to always look ahead for what we want to achieve. Balancing with the kindest, calmest, humorous and bright father I have. I am thankful for the unconditional love of my Alfas’…

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

You might know me you might not, that’s why I am here; to take you inside and give you an idea of my artistic journey.

My name is Rafaella Christoforou a professional Artist and Art Curator from Cyprus. My journey in art started from a very young age where I have developed throughout the years by studying BA (Hons) Fine Arts at UCA in England followed up with the MA Curatorial Practices at UCA. In 2014 I have awarded as an ICR Recreate Scholar of the UK and France and this was one of the most important times in my early journey. I am here talking and writing to you I am alive and my creative background is ongoing which holds some important exhibitions solo and group internationally. I feel blessed for some important achievements and selections of my artworks and those that did not happened yet. But they will. At the age of 32 now and having a flashback of my creative journey including those uncertain times as well (Covid) etc I can say that everything connects, as I have been asked to introduced [you] into my own authentic journey as an artist. Coming back to Cyprus with my red art suitcase and a container full of art I worked as an Academic Art Tutor at a College for three years. From 2017 since today I am the Creative Director of the Atelier of Arts in Cyprus where I teach art to everyone in a space where I call home. My roles though are interchangable. I am artist who can see [your] works from an artistic perspective but at the same time I can see [you] with my curatorial ‘eyes’ as well, help you and guide you with the ‘less’ or more I know… At this stage enable the artist to take you into her artistic journey.

I define myself as “the painter of writing and as the writer of painting” literally,

Throughout the years Rafaella has developed an inimitable alphabet that comes out of herself really physically, an alphabet of new signs and objects, an unreadable for the majority that she constantly creating and investigating thoroughly. In 2021 within my latest solo exhibition in Cyprus I baptize my work and my own alphabet as Alfarale. “I am blessed with the letters of an alphabet and I am the Mother of Alfarale”. I paint and I recreate everything with it, this is my greatest more authentic and realistic obsession’ this is my alfa and my omega in my work. Alfarale it is the most suitable anagrammatism that my name has and can exemplify better my poetic artworks 2D and 3D. Rafaella tends to paint the feeling of writing and the emotion of a letter by hand; she is focusing in the process of writing as much in the genesis of the new sometimes; creature, figurative, portraiture, abstract, another but truly realistic through the authentic gesture I hold into my hand and I feel for the language, I call this realism’. In the procedure of the genesis, colours will be existed and blended together, and this is where the writings become paintings. The artist works in the mediums of drawing, painting, sculpture, metalwork, textual language, calligraphy, poetry although her artworks have spanned a variety of alternative media including film, live performances, 3D steel installations, kinetic installations, video art, NFT, etc.

Rafaella’s works and paintings can be seen through exhibitions, art fairs, artist website, art platforms, social media accounts, live exhibitions, auctions, NFT’s hotels and so on, for now, we truly do not know what the future holds! But different exhibitions are coming up. The artist invites you to experience thoroughly and to respect, Rafaella’s artworks have the potential to work and speak differently upside down, horizontal, vertical and invites the viewers to read her artworks with the eyes of “a new”, as the great Deleuze taught us to dis-joint – dis-locate, I challenge you to do the same trough my journey.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

As the question itself says, there is or there are goal’s, a special mission about my creative journey as a professional Artist and Art Curator. Inside of me there is a voice that I ‘ve been listening and following up over the years, the voice and the sounds I am hearing are words; and literally I paint and I create and I recreate everything with these words, these significant letters that comes out of myself really physically, that enables to be who I am. And now, I am hearing; ‘Continue’ | ‘Create’ as long as I exist there are more things, to experienced to experiment…, to feel to learn and to developed within my journey that I call as Alfarale. The passion I have the love and my charisma are the keywords to continue creating my authentic artworks 2d & 3d. I am dedicated to my journey which fulfills my inner self. This is not something bold or anything is a simple voice that enables me, to be in constant motion and to always ‘becoming’ an artist an authentic, obsessed, sometimes abstract, conceptual but truly realistic. I am the mother of Alfarale and as a mother of different paintings and artworks my intention is to take you everywhere I can, in different places and spaces to travel you, present and showcase you, to distinguish yourself my creatures to inspire and aspire the audience, to question them and perhaps to let them feel in love with you through important exhibitions, showcases, art fairs, houses and many more…

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I think being an artist is a very rewarding aspect itself with all the ups and downs that we might be facing within our journey, since I can tell is not always easy. Personally I call it a Blessing and Charisma! To educate and inspire people through our creative journey means a lot, being able to teach and be taught back. I am fulfilling when I see results when I see the outcome, it is satisfying the journey, of creating, as much the feeling of writing and painting, I love when I blend the colours and I see deeper, this is sublime, the bending and the manipulation of my steel rods. An important rewarding aspect is of course [you] the [viewer] the [audience] when someone – unknown a buyer felts in love or s[h]e wants to have a piece of you, your artwork… To respect and to love someone’s works and journey the way an artist does it is not just a reward but another blessing!

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Image Credits
Image Credits: Kyriakos Georgiou Image Credits: Tonny Ellinas

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Meet Rafaella Christoforou

Meet Rafaella Christoforou

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Hi Rafaella, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

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