Timewarp

Frédéric Bodenes

CREATIVE DIRECTOR LE BON MARCHÉ PARIS

Seduced by Lorenzo’s intermingled graphics at first, I quickly fell in love with the artist. Playful, mischievous, mixing humor and poetry, it was evident that his talent had to reach the Left Bank in Paris. His universe on our central escalator has cheered our customers and magnified our House. A great artistic and human meeting for Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche!

CHRIS CURRY

ART DIRECTOR, THE NEW YORKER

Lorenzo Petrantoni uses type, iconography and an extremely well-honed sense of design to create vital, explosive and unique images. His beautiful and intricate pieces straddle two worlds: the ultra-sophisticated, with refined graphic images that adorn the covers of such magazines as Flaunt, The Guardian and Vogue Accessory, and the edgy rock & roll images working with such clients as Urban Outfitters, Time Out and Coca Cola. He is currently the foremost practitioner of this type of imagery. I had the great pleasure of working with Lorenzo recently to illustrate a piece by Alex Ross about Count Harry Kessler. He was wonderful to work with and presented beautiful sketches, one of which seemed to defy gravity and bend the type of the word “Journal” to form a table top for Kessler’s hands to rest on. He integrated Kessler’s photo into a seamless, exquisite image that was the perfect compliment to Alex’s piece. Lorenzo’s work is truly remarkable.

CARLO GIRDANETTI

CREATIVE DIRECTOR SWATCH

Seeing Lorenzo’s work and falling in love with the almost infinite stories one can discover in it is as easy as liking him as a person: an immediate sparkle! His ability to tell stories, elaborate, explore, quote, recreate, generate new ideas: a spiral of elegant and sophisticated energy that masterfully merges the language of the past with signs of today One feels immediately charmed, and is willing to take the time to get lost, discover and resurface, richer and intrigued, with a big smile. He’s a perfect match with the philosophy of Swatch always there to surprise and intrigue.

Jaime BERIESTAIN

INTERIOR DESIGNER BARCELONA

Lorenzo Petrantoni is an evolutionary artist. In his work, he manages to adapt to different materials and scales. A clock or gigantic walls! And he does it with the same charming fluidity that characterizes him! His work is unique and he knows how to mold it to continue to surprise us.

GAIL ANDERSON

FORMER CREATIVE DIRECTOR OF DESIGN, SPOTC

It’s so easy to lose yourself in Lorenzo’s work. It’s elaborate romantic, nostalgic and just plain beautiful. I only wish he spoke English when we worked together so I could have told him so myself!

Martin Schott

DIRECTOR, CREATIVE SERVICE LINCOLN CENTER NEW YORK

In today’s “everything is a click / touch away” world, it’s refreshing to collaborate with an artist of Lorenzo Petrantoni’s caliber: someone who combines the imagery of an era long gone with the symbols of today, crafting powerful and current visual statements.

Bruce Ramsay

NEWSWEEK DIRECTOR COVERS 1997–2009

Obama covers were tough. After a dozen or so, they began to look the same! Not Lorenzo’s however for Newsweek’s 2008 year-end issue, he brilliantly envisioned Obama as Copernicus, master of a chaotic universe falling into order around him.

Riccardo Taranto

MANAGING DIRECTOR UNIVERSITÀ BOCCONI

Lorenzo Petrantoni, through his art, physically rendered the Bocconi University motto “Knowledge that matters.” With his careful work, in continuous reference between past, present and future, he paid homage to the knowledge produced and transmitted by the men and women who have made the history of our institution. Lorenzo’s careful research in archives and documents represents, in his artwork, the impact that research has on society by helping to spread it to the city, the Milanese and visitors to Bocconi who come from all over the world.

Rodolph Boutanquoi

ART DIRECTOR AT LE MONDE

From the small port of Doëlan I am sending you this pretty postcard, to (re) declare my love for you. Our romance at the World supplement was short. I still have wonderful memories of it. Your creative pencil strokes embellished the pages of “L’Epoque.” The sensuality of your blacks and whites blended wonderfully with the content of the subject. You detected my expectation very well. I can’t wait to find a new field to welcome your imagination where my emotions will languish. With all my love.

JESSE ADAMS

ART DIRECTOR GULFSHORE MAGAZINE

I have great memories of working with Lorenzo for a cover story about the winners and losers over the business year. He introduced many clever ideas to the project that I had not considered. The result of his creativity is an illustration that to this day is framed and hanging in my office as a personal favorite.

Lorenzo Petrantoni was born in Genoa in 1970. After studying graphic arts in Milan, he moved to France to work as an Art Director at Young&Rubicam. After his return to Italy, he went on to work with some of the greatest communication agencies. He then moved away from the advertising world in order to fully dedicate his time to his illustrating career. His passion for graphic design and his fascination for the 19th century combine in his illustrations and videos. He uses images from textbooks and dictionaries dating back to that period which he discovered while browsing booksellers. His distinctive and unmistakable illustrations give life back to words, images, events and characters that would otherwise be forgotten. He has worked as a designer and used his art to create campaigns and videos for prestigious brands.

He has worked with major newspapers and international magazines and he has had exhibitions all around the world.

He has won many prizes including V&A Illustration Awards, London International awards, New York Festival, American Illustration, Cresta International Advertising Awards, etc. He now lives in Milan, he is a member of the 59ème Demi Brigade de Ligne in Marengo and he positively loves Perrier.