The Turin-based illustrator Guerrilla Spam has interpreted the “Quarantana” as a stylized toy extended from the arm of an elegant, almost Egyptian figure in a tall fez. Alessandria-born Street Artist 108 depicts the traditional doll as a unique abstraction merged within a form, not specifically figurative, rather primitive perhaps.

Both are interpreting a pagan/Christian traditional ritual next to each other here in Santa Croce di Magliano.

“ ‘Quarantana‘ is a doll made of fabric and straw, having the appearance of an old woman; the doll, usually hanged to a rope between the balconies or in front of the windows, stands on a potato with seven feathers attached,” say organizers at the Antonio Giordano Street Art festival. “The ritual, fusing Christian and pagan cultures, expresses the importance of living a life of sobriety and peace.”

An unusual topic to depict and oddly paired artists to create it – you are here able to better appreciate the multiplicity of styles at work on the street today. CLICK HERE to see a number of variations on the Quarantana doll as it is used throughout Santa Croce di Magliano, Southern Italy and the Balkan Region.

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