Madda grew up in Rome, Italy, where she was raised by her photographer mother and journalist father alongside her brother and sister. Madda had always loved to draw, but when it came time to choose a university path, she turned her attention from creating art to studying its history. Madda completed just one year of her course before deciding to work full time in art restoration. Her early projects were in Rome as an apprentice at the Museo de Arte Moderno and later cleaning the marble of the Foro Romano.
Although Madda was finding consistent work in art restoration, she felt that something was missing.
Passion.
As a Journalist and intellectual, Madda’s father instilled the importance of passion in his children. To not simply work a job out of necessity, but out of curiosity and inspiration. Madda’s yearning to explore and to experience other cultures led her to relocate to Mexico after visiting her sister in New York.
“I wanted to see another culture. I wanted to see other ways of life… a totally different way of thinking and living. I wanted to explore other things. Mexico was something that I didn’t know at all, so it was appealing to me.”
Madda’s travels led her to the highlands of Chiapas, where she fell in love with Luis, an Anthropologist from Mexico City.
“To me, it was exciting because it was something totally unknown, so different, and very romantic because I was in love… It was the first time that I got to know textiles and natural dyes.”
For the next couple of years, Madda found creative ways to earn a living in Chiapas as a painter and tour guide - she even made pasta in restaurants! Feeling the need to establish herself and start a career, she decided to move to Mexico City with Luis, where she was accepted to study textile design at a local university. The varied curriculum allowed her to explore her interest in color theory, textiles, paper making, natural dyes and more.
Just before completing her degree, Luis was offered an opportunity in San Cristóbal, Chiapas, directing a new cultural cooperative. The offer was extended to Madda as well, to lead workshops in the textile branch of the cooperative. The young couple packed up their life in Mexico City and moved back to Chiapas.
“We started with just one loom and one weaver, importing wool from Australia. We made pillow covers for a couple of hotels in town. When we started the project, we wanted to support the local economy and give more people the opportunity to use traditional techniques. The idea was to apply these traditional techniques to different kinds of products - homewares such as rugs, pillows and bedding. We were like pioneers in this way, making modern designs come to life using traditional techniques. At that time, there was no such thing even in Mexico. So this was a preview of what was to come, the concept that grew into Madda Studio.”
Living among Chamula artisans and learning their ancient techniques broadened Madda’s creative scope and deepened her appreciation of ancient ancestral techniques.
“The Chamula spend immeasurable time processing raw wool to make fabric for their community’s clothing. Magical and timeless rituals transform raw material into simple, beautiful, and expressive forms that I honor. Those rituals and the processes involving the natural world speak to all of us as alternatives to unbridled consumption and homogenization.”
Immersing herself in natural dyes and handmade textiles also expanded Madda’s voice as a painter, inspiring her to extract pigments from plants to create mixed media collages on canvas. Some of these explorations later became the basis for Madda Studio’s tapestry collections, including Apoala and Terra.
Terra by Maddalena Forcella, in woven form.
The diversity in her work reflects Madda’s expansive and dynamic approach, emphasizing color and texture across time and multiple mediums. It is her passion for generational knowledge and technical skills that propels her vision, making her a strong collaborative force for her clients as well as an independent artist.
