By Marina Gaiti
It was a moment he will never forget: When University of Westminster student Antonino D’Amico, 24, entered the Reina Sofia Museum in Spain for the first time and looked up at Picasso’s ‘Guernica‘ masterpiece, the idea came. This was his inspiration, which launched his goal of opening his own art business.
D’Amico, who is a second year International Business student, said: “This painting is the one that expresses the most intense feelings for me, because of the reason it was created, its background and its meaning.”
D’Amico was born and raised in Palermo, Sicily, where 70% of Italian historical culture is located. Despite that, he said his parents were neither interested in any kind of art nor raised in it. His first real introduction and emotional connection to art was during his third year of high school in Palermo.
He said: “Thanks to my teacher in high school who has a big passion about art and I loved the way he was teaching us about each art masterpiece and its meaning behind the final work, I got curious about exploring it myself. I personally developed an interest in art while traveling in Europe and this is when I truly started enjoying the subject.”
Traveling around Europe to admire art pieces is something he has been doing for years. “I went to Madrid to see paintings by Picasso and Salvador Dali, I enjoyed more artworks from Picasso and Diego Velasquez in Barcelona as well as pieces from Gustavo Corbet, Van Gogh and Claude Monet in Paris.
“Of course I will never forget Van Gogh’s magnificent ‘Vase of Fifteen Sunflowers’ masterpiece in London and Gustav Klimt’s ‘The Kiss’ artwork in Vienna,” he added.
Italians are well known for their taste in food – the Italian cuisine is one of the best and well-known in the world. D’Amico describes how his current part-time job as a chef de pass at a London club has no connection whatsoever with his new business.
“My art is not dependent on food. As an Italian, food is my passion and so is art. I do love cooking, but art is completely different. There are people who can somehow relate them to each other, but to me they are not related.”
The student claims that he was always impassioned by art and wanted to turn his passion into a company as a source of inspiration as well as income. He said: “Art has been my passion since I was little and I actually travel around Europe to see art. This is why I decided to go ahead and open an art business instead of a clothing, retail or jewelry company that are quite common. I wanted to turn my passion into a business. This is something that I am taking very seriously.”
Although many businesses have closed down since the emergence of Covid-19, D’Amico was able to set up an online business even before the lockdown ended. After getting a little basic business knowledge from his university’s units to start with, he decided to go ahead and plan a way to fulfil his dream.
D’Amico was already working as a part-time chef de pass at a well-known club in London. Having been shut since the first lockdown, he came up with the idea to finally launch his business as he had more time to work on it and make it happen.
“I have been investing in the stock market for some time now as a second job to get additional income. Since the start of lockdown, that was the only job I could do to earn extra income. I have been saving a decent amount of money each month since I started working in that field, until I finally saved enough to have the financial ability to invest in my own business.
His work’s era depends on the artistic and elegant styles that most represent him. He chooses his art designs based on his personal likings and desires as well as what people are requesting and what is on trend.
It also considers how competitors work in order to provide high quality products at affordable prices. “On our website there are lots of different unique designs that people can only find in this company, as well as designs, such as logos of high-end retail companies. For example, we have a Medusa painting from Versace, just because people asked for it,” said the art lover.
His company, Hall Art & Design LTD, is based in London, but also has online subsidiaries in the USA and Australia. Their products can be shipped all over Europe within 1-3 business days.
There are currently over 200 wall art designs on their website to choose from. “On our company’s website you will find items designed by me and other professional designers. Our goal is to create products that you can decorate your home with according to your taste – on a budget,” he said.
D’Amico said he is very serious about his business being both ethically and environmentally sustainable. He said: “All our products are made to order, which reduces all kinds of waste. Our products are also not tested on animals and 100% recyclable, except for the wooden frames of course.
“Environmental sustainability is our priority, mission and goal, which is why we produce our products in different countries, so we don’t have to waste much energy, fuel and excess packaging while shipping it to its destination,” he added.
He dreams of expanding his business around the globe one day. He stated that after completing his university studies, he plans to stay and obtain his nationality in the UK and expand his artistic works. He said, “I have a dream and I will do my best to achieve it!”
Any inquiries? Email: support@hallartdesign.art or check out the Hall Art & Design Instagram page.
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