The set as destiny: anatomy of a visionary

INTERVISTA A NICOLA GOBBETTO

BY VERTIGINI STUDIO

Nicola Gobbetto, Pork Lake, 2013, digital animation, DVDBlue Ray, 4’ 40’’, ed 23

Between art, scenography, and set design, Nicola transforms every image into a small parallel world where dream and matter meet. His visions are born in solitude and live for an instant in front of the lens, suspended between intuition, technique, and a deeply personal aesthetic. In this conversation, he enters the heart of his creative process: imagination as refuge, the set as language, beauty as an act of authenticity.

VS: Nicola, you move between art, scenography, and set design as if they were three chapters of the same story. How do these languages contaminate each other in the way you construct an image?

N.G: I’m a Pisces, rising Taurus with a Scorpio moon, and Mercury (the planet of communication, for me the most important planet...) in Pisces. Pisces is a sign that loves to dream—actually, let me correct myself—it must dream.Woe to anyone who tries to burst that magical bubble I live in. Communication is fundamental for me,

and I like to express myself as if I were inside a film. Everything I do, even in my home, is art. I take care of every detail, from the lighting to the choice of shapes, colours, and scents. Everything I do must be memorable. I do it for others, but above all for myself. I inherited this from my father, who used to wake me up in the morning with classical music and bring me breakfast in bed with a fresh flower picked from the garden.

VS: Each of your sets feels like an inner scene, even when it’s created for a brand or a campaign. How much of you—of your “artist’s eye”—remains in commissioned work?

N.G: Beautiful question... I think you and I speak the same language. It doesn’t always happen that I can put something of myself into it. Obviously, I prefer to have carte blanche while still starting from a mood board. Often I receive very precise directives, but I still try to add my touch.You can tell that I come from an artistic background and that I’m not just a simple “dresser.” Twenty-five years of career in the visual arts certainly helps.The trained eye is there. I started working with scenography and set design relatively late, but I’m already fighting for this role to receive the attention and recognition it deserves.

Mahmood @vanityfairitalia Fotografa @angelinabergenwall Set & Flower Design @nicola_gobbeto

You are often described as a “master of disguise.” Do you enjoy hiding behind what you create, or do you use staging to reveal something more true?

N.G: I’m the one who calls myself a master of disguise, but it’s really more about my love for themed parties and the costumes that come with them. My style icon in life is Merlin the Wizard leaving for Honolulu, whom I paid homage to in a very literal way last January at a friend’s party. I loved stepping into his shoes. Last Halloween, instead, I was dressed as a bouquet of roses, with a balaclava entirely covered in red roses that I made myself, onto which I kept spraying the scent of the same flower. It’s always my way of escaping reality while still putting something of myself into it.

Your work is profoundly visual, but also conceptual: you build worlds that exist for only a few moments, before the camera freezes them.What fascinates you more— the construction or the disappearance of the image?

N.G:The construction is something magical. I’m alone in my studio creating a world. On set, that world is shared with the photographer, lighting assistants, stylist, and models. Often the talents who “inhabit” the set—who are indeed the protagonists, but the only ones who don’t create anything visual—thank me.That’s my favorite moment, because I’ve managed to bring them into a parallel dimension.

Last Halloween, instead, I was dressed as a bouquet of roses, with a balaclava entirely covered in red roses that I made myself, onto which I kept spraying the scent of the same flower.

As a scenographer and set designer, you live constantly immersed in the dialogue between space and perception.What does it mean for you to “create a world”?

N.G: In reality, good communication with photographers is fundamental, and in my case it has almost always worked. It’s a two-person job—then of course there’s also the styling and beauty team. But the set, even if it’s strong to begin with, can only be elevated by the photographer. I often build two-dimensional shapes using cardboard boxes, and the talents only perceive them once they see themselves on the monitor.

VS: Artificial intelligence is redefining the boundary between imagination and visual production. How do you look at this shift? Does it intrigue you as a creative tool, or do you fear it may homogenize the gaze?

N.G: I’ve already received mood boards where the images were created with artificial intelligence—like the mermaid tail that eventually ended up on the cover of Vogue Portugal. In that case, the challenge is understanding how to make something unreal become real. It doesn’t scare me; on the contrary, it stimulates me a lot!

Photography: @vicoolyasaida Set design: @nicola_gobbett

VS: Fashion and contemporary art share the same urgency today: to construct emotions.You inhabit both—how do you manage to maintain your unique voice within two worlds so hungry for images?

N.G: Every time is different, every time it’s a different world. Often, things are improvised as well. On the Vanity Fair set with Mahmood, I saw the look—bare chest with almost erased nipples, inflatable Rick Owens trousers, wet hair—and I immediately saw The Afternoon of a Faun by Stéphane Mallarmé. So I decided to mount a blue painted backdrop on light stands and put a huge bundle of lake reeds in his hand. Perfect image! One of my favorites.

Nicola Gobbetto - Self Portrait

VS: What is your idea of beauty today — and how much do imperfection or the unexpected influence your way of creating?

N.G: I see beauty even in what is ugly, but above all beauty is always subjective. Let’s say there is beauty when there is authenticity, and I’ve realised that if I’m not anxious, it’s a bad sign.The only time I was calm on set, everything went wrong. I love imperfections and unexpected moments; sometimes it’s better to bring as much material as possible to have the chance to improvise, repair, or overturn everything.

VM: If you could imagine the future of your work, would you see it as more physical or more digital? More handmade or more generated by algorithms?

N.G: Anything is fine as long as the dream continues. But I must admit that I enjoy working with photographers who love experimenting with AI, while still starting from my creations (without distorting them), enlarging or warping them.

By Vertigini Studio