In our recent past, along with social transformations, technological triumphs and a new modern sensitivity, we have been asked whether we are man or woman; we've been asked to participate and to pay attention to the things around us, even in the world of art. But instead, we seem to distance ourselves from good traditional values of moral spirituality and ethics. Recently things have been changing, thank goodness. The artist's 'profound soul' is slowly realizing this divergence and  is abandoning 'that' kind of art (if we can call it art).  'That art' that is connected to negative consumerism and improvisation (just take a look at the installations that cause shock and stupor and that have negatively influenced basic artistic values, both international and Italian).
As for contemporary art, today’s artists are paying particular attention to real and intimate dynamics.  Artists are 'rediscovering' colours and light (we are referring to landscape interpretations), that demonstrare joy and serenity. The internal soul-searching attitude and artworks by Susanna Riversi reflect this new movement.

Today's society needs new spiritual tranquillity and it is, in part, the art world's duty to give it proper representation, whether it is in the form of paintings, sculptures, literature, music etc.
There's no comparison to the nature surrounding Sovicille, a town that lies at the bottom of the Sienese Montagnola. Susanna Riversi resides in the Castle of Sovicille, an international touristic destination, which is immersed in the most solar, unique beauty that the Sienese countryside has to offer.

Her important return to this immaculate nature, after various moves among beautiful cities, has played a profound role in her life. It has been a return to her roots, to the beginning, to nature, to colours. This return to colours reflects the pure solar aspect of her 'ego', so profound that this Roman artist shines with intelligence and charm. 

Her best artistic period coincides with the rediscovering of the countryside. This moment is lived with profound love and profound poetry. Her first steps as an artist have been a slow and gradual love. Even today her use of strong and decisive colours, within her compositions and paint strokes, represent her only true model:  nature.

Colours are what she perceives in a flower, in water lilies, that move in her fish, in the woods, that evolve daily in the countryside that surrounds her, in the relationship between the earth and the heavens, that are every changing and prismatic. There is no doubt that her interior spirituality dominates her works, with a strong, decisive, nervous creative passion, just like a real act of love.

Ms. Riversi 'plays' with her colours, a game with true nature, which transports us to her internal spirit. This artist perceives 'impressionism' and brings us back to its time, almost in a primitive way, very observant and careful of this French art style. Even though Riversi's landscapes may demonstrate a parental link to certain painters, Monet and Van Gogh, her most recent style is similar to 'fauves' painters with a particular care for the pure brush stroke of 'divisionism' and from there a return to the beginning of Italian and Tuscan impressionism painting styles.

After stating this, it is difficult to pinpoint a specific and precise artistic style to Susanna Riversi, even though, we can now see her work as being much closer to contemporary experiences.  In other words, if we compare impressionism artwork with those of 'fauve' and Riversi's Paintings, we can draw some conclusions to best define her style.

Some first observations deal with the chromatic material type mixture, as in Riversi's case, is pure and clean, almost raw and essential. It is easy to understand why this Roman artist and all of her paintings are solar. Like her character, the chromatic construction in her artwork is well represented; it is solar, genuine, sincere, spontaneous, immediate, and suddenly humorous. You can tell that her painting comes from far away. It has travelled through woods, over the countryside, over hills, crossed rivers, and arrived to Sovicille, immersed in one of the most beautiful natures in the world, in the Sienese Tuscany. Where it has become wrapped up in emotions, where it has brought her painting into direct contact with the earth and heavens. Her works don't seem to be filtered anymore with '-isms' or inspired by great masters or by simple market requests.

We naturally feel Riversi's impetuous search, certain influences of great French master, you can recognize Van Gogh's yellow or Pissarro's orange, but this artist is like a good provincial cook. After she's been to Paris, she'll re-make fantastic and original dishes, all in her own way and style and all with what good Tuscan cuisine can offer. You can't deny that a paternal presence in art exists, and yet that is what happens in Riversi's artwork. It is important for her to forge ahead with footprints that are hers and no one else’s. If this artist should one day decide to exhibit all her artwork, as she has created it through time, we would discover all the phases of her passion, of her natural talent and her change of humour in her work.

Gilberto Madioni Art critic Siena