Elena Salvini Pierallini

Elena Salvini Pierallini (1934 Florence – 2024), also known as ESP, was an artist from Florence, Italy, who specialised in embroidery, photography, and book arts. Her work uses imagery from the natural world, medieval iconography from across Europe, and themes associated with ecology, psychology, and philosophy.

Early life Elena Salvini Pierallini cited extensive travels in her youth as a significant influence on her art. A particularly influential trip occurred when she was 13, during which she visited her cousin in a village near Vallombrosa. She recalled walking for “hours and hours, forgetting about lunch, leaving and finding trails without encountering anyone until sunset”. She soon got lost and was scolded by her cousin when she finally returned home. She comments, “I soon forgot my cousin’s scoldings and remembered that silence, that climb, the aimless march to an unknown destination, without regard for time.” During a stay in London, as ESP herself recounts, she noticed that Italian embroidery, especially in the Tuscan style, was prominently displayed at the Victoria and Albert Museum. It was then that she decided to devote her energy to this technique, with her mother's guidance and collaboration. She took a supplementary exam at the Accademia di Belle Arti, where she studied for four years under . She did not enjoy the process of art school and was often critiqued for her painterly technique. Instead, she fostered a relationship with architect , who taught her to produce precise architectural drawings and was her mentor and advisor. Other themes that inspired her embroidery as it developed into the 1960s and 1970s include nature, animals, the signs of the Zodiac, and the iconography of Romanesque sculpture. Technically, her works had two layers: the top organza layer, which was embroidered, and the bottom silk layer, which was painted. Each was handcrafted by Pierallini in an accordion style so that they could “stand” on their own. The books blend Pierallini's signature embroidery style with several media, including paper, pen drawings, photographs, silk, and cardboard.

Pierallini's “I Dodici Mesi” series is inspired by Les Très Riches Heures du Duc du Berry. This embroidery series depicts the twelve months with different scenes. January: The wedding feast; February: Snowfall; March: Plowing; April: The wedding; May: The trip to the country; June: The cutting of the hay; July: Harvesting and shearing; August: Off to the hunt; September: The harvest; October: Sowing; November: Gathering acorns; December: Hunting the Wild Boar.