Dear Lodovica, from actress to author of a passionate book. How did it happen?
Honestly, I don’t believe that people are born to have one personal attitude or to rimain in one single level of expression. Since I was a child I have always loved writing, even before I fell in love with acting. My life experience in Africa made me explore part of myself that I didn’t know before. This book is a travel journal. I couldn’t publish all my papers otherwise it would have been as big as the Divine Comedy. I tried to focus on the most important moments of my African journey and I really wanted to publish some of the pictures I took there. I must admit that I am very jealous of my photos but I couldn’t abstain from including these images in the book.
You forgot to mention your drawings. They are very beautiful. Where did you learn to draw?
No, I didn’t. I am deeply attached to my drawings. They all depict animals. They mean a lot to me because, while I was painting all those amazing creatures, I found out that this was my place in the world. I was there in the middle of nowhere. It was just me and wild animals. I spent hours staring at them without drawing a line. I was hypnotized. I never attended an art class, I am self-taught. The real artist is my mother, she has a great drawing and painting technique.
Your love for Africa is uncontrollable. Do you go there often?
I try to go back there whenever I have a chance to. It’s not as easy as going to my summer house, obviously. It takes a lot of time and I am so busy right now that I could never leave for a month. Above all, I don’t want to go away from my dog Biscottina, she’s old and she needs me. And I need her. When we are not together I feel incomplete. She is my heart.