MACHAS

The Art of the Aperitivo: Ray Oranges x Cleaf

Needless to say, the aperitivo is a quintessential component of the Italian lifestyle - and Milan is considered by many the place where this ritual has reached new heights and given birth to iconic drinks such as the Negroni Sbagliato. Cleaf, a leading company in surfaces for interior design with their headquarters in Lombardy, wanted to pay tribute to this tradition in their 2023 calendar.

With his minimal, sleek and elegant approach, Machas artist Ray Oranges was the perfect fit to illustrate the art of aperitivo in style - this time expanding his creative process to adopt a mixed media technique.

“Creating the Cleaf 2023 calendar was an intriguing experience - I haven’t used a mixed media technique since my university days!” says Ray Oranges. “The images I made back then were completely different from my artistic work, and I had to find a trait d’union between two very different styles.”

Ray was inspired by twelve iconic Milanese bars, expertly mixing architectural features and drinks while seamlessly integrating Cleaf’s textures into each artwork. “I used the colours of the Cleaf materials selected for each artwork on the illustrative parts and then added a bit of noise to harmonise the composition”, recalls Ray. “The photographs of Cleaf’s materials obviously had a very high resolution, and I could scale them accordingly, and I used a gradient effect to enhance each specific texture. I also made juxtaposing the different elements smoother with a very subtle shading that added depth to the composition.”

The result is a stunning and sophisticated series of illustrations that each convey the special aperitivo atmosphere to accompany every calendar month.

We will reveal new artworks throughout the year, so keep your eyes peeled for more!

See more of Ray Oranges’ work here.