House of Peroni

House of Peroni Interview by Daisy Woodward
The Italian illustrator and New York Times regular Emiliano Ponzi tells us why he always plays mind games with his celebrated work
Emiliano Ponzi is one of Italy’s most exciting contemporary illustrators, The New York Times, Le Monde, The Economist and Penguin Books just a few of his regular clients. Simply, and delicately hued, distinctly graphic and with a cleverly considered use of line, Ponzi’s works are both pleasing from an aesthetic point of view and rewarding to those who look for deeper meaning within them. Indeed, Ponzi’s approach is very much conceptual. “It’s a mind job, a mind exercise,” he once said of his vocation. “The style, colour and shapes come after the idea… What comes first is a solid vision, a spark based on rational thought.” This has proved a winning method for the Milan-based creative who, in his thirteen-year career, has already won multiple awards (including the prestigious Young Guns Award from the New York Art Directors Club and medals of honour from the Society of Illustrators New York) and published a monograph, 10×10, documenting his life and key works to date. Here, we sit down with Ponzi to find out more about his inspirations, aspirations and favourite projects.
full interview here