Stefano Mazzanti

I was born on Garda Lake and water has always been a very important element for me.

In my life I work with light. On the stage they define me Lighting designer, in the exhibitions visual artist or Light artist, my daughter “Luciaio”. And it is the definition I prefer, because it makes me think of someone who always makes experiments and creates with his own hands.

I have a past as a musician and an education spent between the Dams of Bologna and the Teatro dell'Acqua of the Cesare and Daniele Lievi brothers, where I understood the importance of theater by putting myself to the test in all roles: from lights to sounds, from actor to musician to set designer. Here I met Gigi Saccomandi, a great lighting designer, whom I later had the good fortune to follow as an assistant. Also here I understood which of the theater arts I was most passionate about and the one I wanted to deepen. Thus was born a degree thesis with an eloquent title: The language of light! This was followed by the publication of the book Luce in scena, the first historical and technical text in Italian on the subject.

In 1999, in the Bertone Forest, my first rudimentary light installations were born among trees and ponds. Many others followed and are now touring some of the major European Festivals.
I started to devote myself to teaching and for a few years I have been trying to convey my passion to young by holding courses for technicians or set designers at the Academy of Fine Arts where I am a teacher.

I currently create light installations, in which I look for relationships between light and primordial, natural elements and the identity of the human being and which I develop with typically musical composition techniques. Finally, I am lucky to work with wonderful artists, directors, musicians, dancers and actors in prestigious festivals and theaters.