Breanna Youkhana

Vespa in Rome

An appreciation for a Vespa I photographed in Rome, Italy, last spring.

“This piece experiments with acrylic gel transfer to express my appreciation for the style and elegance of Italian Vespa motorcycles. The subject matter comes from a photograph I took of one of the Vespas I spotted in Rome on my trip to Italy last spring. This Vespa was in mint condition and propped up perfectly, and it is painted one of my favourite colors, so I knew I had to photograph it. I wanted to communicate through this piece not only that the motorcycle is a mode of quick transportation, but it is also culturally significant to Italy, as I am partially Italian myself. I used bold and bright colours as well as gestural line to emulate the speeding nature of Vespas as well as it being romanticized around the world as a symbol of love. This was my first project using acrylic gel transfer, and I anticipate using it in future works. ”