I am so happy you agreed to do this interview with me. So let’s start right away. 🙂

If I may call it that way then you are truly the queen of commissions in the Ghost fandom. First of all how did you discover Ghost and what do you particularly like about them? What caught your interest?

Hello my dear! ‘u’ Awww you’re so kind!

So: My first approach to Ghost was back in 2014, with Year Zero and our beloved Bone Daddy… It’s just that at the time I was a bit more puritanical than I am now, (it sounds strange but it’s true *laugh*) and I didn’t appreciate them immediately for their themes on Satanism… which are, in addition to the melodious musical style and the unique atmospheres, one of the things that fascinate me the most, including the fact that they leave free interpretation.

I had to wait until 2018 to fully appreciate them with Prequelle and Cardi C and then slowly delve into all four albums with their respective Papas, ghouls and all the clergy attached to them. And now they are one of my favorite bands.

When did you notice that people are interested in your drawings and would like to give you commissions?

It’s all started on February 18, 2018. With my first NSFW commission about Papa II and one of my oc Kelly.

Do you know how many commissions you have already done for others?

So far I’m up to 232 Ghost commissions, but I still have a few more to do…

How can someone, who is interested in a drawing of you, contact you and commission you? Are your commissions currently open?

By having my „office“ on Instagram, interested people can send me a private message asking for information and one or more commissions. And yep, for now they are open.

Your drawing style is unique. On the one hand it is very detailed and yet abstract. Since when do you draw?

I’m going to say something very common: I’ve been drawing since I was very little: 2 or 3 year’s old! I started by doodling on the walls of my house! xD

Have you done an educational training or do you teach yourself everything yourself? Do you have role models?

In my elementary and middle school years, I would get my inspiration from my fairy tale and comic books, then seeing that my interest in drawing grew more and more, and seeing that during the various school plays I was recruited to draw the poster for the event, then attended art school, interspersed with private drawing and painting classes, and finally comic school.

Despite the school teachings, I have always tried to deepen on my own, my knowledge and to create my personal style of drawing since 2012.

The painters and cartoonists that have inspired me and still inspire me are many: Michelangelo, Caravaggio, W.A. Bouguereau, Mucha, Milo Manara, Juanio Guarnido, Tony Sandoval, Jordi Lafebre, and also my colleagues in the Ghost family such as Lemore, Yukke Dondon, Claire Hummel, Bibig, Mxgicdave and many others.

How long do you need for one drawing? Of course, it depends on how complex it should be.

It depends a lot on the mood as well as the complexity of the artwork. The time can range from as little as half an hour to two days in between. During dark periods of artist’s block, like the one that’s been taking me on and off for the past 6 months, I can rack up commissions for months at a time… and it’s something I’m very ashamed of.

Do you draw every day? Or do you need an artistic break from time to time to free your mind?

I try to draw every day because, as they taught me at comics school, if you stay still for even one day, drawing will be very tiring; even if I need some moments to be able to disconnect and tidy up my thoughts especially when the mood is black and the concentration is zero…

Do you work continuously on one drawing or do you switch between different drawings?

Unfortunately, I’m a very finicky person: if a drawing doesn’t come out, I’ll stick with it until it comes out the way I want, even if that means deleting it countless times.

One of your specialities are drawings with an erotic and sensual theme. First of all I would like to say that I adore your drawings very much. Even if they are sometimes very explicit, they are always classy without appearing smutty in a negative way. How did you start making erotic drawings? Do you have it all in your mind? Or how do you get inspiration for this? You like art of Burlesque I saw?

Aww thank you so so much! Well let’s just say that I started doing my first erotic drawings around the age of 12/13, at the time I was obsessed with Dragon Ball and liked to think about what happened in the intimacy between Bulma and Vegeta (my favorite couple)… getting invariably bullied by my classmates and letting it go for a while.

Over the years I’ve come to realize that there is nothing wrong with drawing erotic art, even though up until a few years ago I was criticized for it. Why can’t I draw something natural, beautiful and that makes not only me, but other people happy? I use both my imagination and a few references for my work, because as I always say, I’m constantly updating with my style and you never stop learning. 

And moreover, I LOVE Burlesque, the real one (not the one in the movie with Aguilera and Cher) Dita Von Teese is for me the symbol of refinement and sensuality! And to prove it, although now that I think about it I never showed it, my Erised is a burlesquer.

You give the fans the opportunity to express their fantasies and deepest wishes by translating them into drawings.  Without judging are there any wishes from customers that exceed your limits or that you generally refuse to draw?

I can say that in the last two years I have highly exceeded my limits * laughs * but I don’t mind at all. So far I haven’t had any requests so vulgar that I had to refuse them, maybe also because all my clients know what I draw and what I don’t.

I really adore these little stories about your OC Erised and Copia. Please tell me about them. How was Erised born? Will we see more of them in the future?

Erised is a symbol of my rebellion and desire for freedom that occurred in June 2012. She started out as a burlesquer and friend/collaborator of Rammstein, I had done a few comics with her over the years.

Then for two years I laid her to rest picking her up again in the fall of 2018… that year Prequelle was the backbone soundtrack and I was delving more into the Ghost project, and finding our now former Cardinal very charming, I thought it would be tantalizing to create a story between them. As soon as I’m done with the commissions, I want to come back to it.

What struck me most about your art that you have a great talent for backgrounds. You are working with special effects like rays of light, mirrors or real photos. You are very experimental. How do you develop the concepts for the backgrounds? These are often more elaborate than the people in the drawing itself.

For years I thought that backgrounds and landscapes were not so important, a concept that is absolutely wrong and that I am ashamed to have implemented up to 5 years ago… I am catching up a lot and I use various styles, also because in the comics field backgrounds, long or very long planes, are the basis for a story and for placing the characters in a concrete and not abstract environment. In addition I try to make them as detailed as possible, to give a clear contrast with the characters so that they are paradoxically in the foreground compared to the environment, being almost imperfect.

I work in an architectural office and renovate historical churches. I adore your love of detail for architectural elements from the Gothic era. You live in Italy, which is known for its famous historical buildings. Are you interested in historical architecture? Is there a building you would like to see, perhaps also outside of Italy?

I am an architecture graduate from art school and yes I do love historical architecture, especially Gothic and Romanesque architecture being a lover of the Middle Ages; visiting Notre Dame is my greatest aspiration and I hope one day to do so….

What does your artist name „EssElleDì“ mean? Does it have a special meaning?

Is simple: it’s an acronym of my name. ‘u’

You prefer to keep your identity secret. Does it have a special reason? Have you ever had a bad experience?

I don’t consider myself that interesting compared to my works. Let’s just say that I prefer people to talk about me through my drawings and style rather than about myself.

Are there any other projects apart from Ghost Fandom that you are working on?

Oh yes… apart from the story between Erised and Copia, I have another project that I would like to get back to. It’s personal and at the time it gave me a lot of satisfaction and I would like to get back to it as soon as possible.

I am curious what we will see from in the future. Thank you so much for taking your time and answering my questions. I wish you all the best for 2021 and and that you can fulfil all your goals.

If you want to see more of SLD’s amazing art and give her your support, please have a look at her portfolio and social media accounts.

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