Luca Barcellona, Milan born in 1978, is a freelance graphic designer, artist and calligrapher, and a leading name in the world of modern calligraphy.
Trained as a graphic designer and Graffiti writer, he was part of the Italian hip hop movement of the mid 1990s, contributing to the writing of several classics of the genre and to the Italian Graffiti scene. Always passionate about writing, he came to professional calligraphy in 1999, trying his hand in every field of lettering, from type design, letterpress and engraving to experiments with virtual reality. Letters are the main component of his work, and the intent of his work is to bring together the manual skill of an ancient art such as writing with the languages and tools of the digital era, diversifying and expanding the potential of calligraphy applied to graphics, packaging, teaching, and the artistic and performance field. With a refined combination of the study of classical styles and his experience in the world of graffiti writing, he has inspired new generations of calligraphy enthusiasts with his work. For him, writing represents a profound meditative act, a means of re-appropriating human gestural rhythms within the hectic times of everyday life. His lettering has been requested by many major brands in the fashion, clothing, discography and publishing sectors (he wrote the Absolut packaging), as well as working for important museum commissions.He has been teaching calligraphy since 2007 with the Associazione Calligrafica Italiana and in the main design schools (IED, NABA, Domus Academy, Raffles Design School). Over the last fifteen years, he has held workshops and lectures all over the world to disseminate calligraphic culture and his work in lettering, including the USA, Canada, Japan, Australia, Brazil and Argentina, Mexico and Turkey.
He has exhibited at several European galleries in solo and group shows. His latest solo exhibition is Lost in Strokes, (2021) at the Patricia Armocida Gallery (Milan) An important part of his work are live and large-scale writing performances, which began in 2003 with the Rebel Ink collective together with Rae Martini and Marco Klefisch, up to performances in the theatre with pianist Cesare Picco and multiple karate world champion Dario Marchini. With Lazy Dog Press, a publishing house of which he is also a founding partner, he published his first monograph Take Your Pleasure Seriously (2012), edited the Manual of Calligraphy (with the Italian Calligraphic Association (2020) and designed the covers of successful volumes including L'Italia insegna, Pittori di Cinema and the EnnioMorricone graphic monograph.
He was a protagonist of the Italian hip hop scene of the 1990s-2000s, collaborating with some of the most prominent artists (Colle Der Fomento, Kaos One, Night Skinny, Inoki, Joe Cassano, Fritz Da Cat) and author of some classics of the genre including Street opera, Gli Occhi della Strada, Piombo e fango, Lingua Ferita.

He is an avid collector of vinyl records, from jazz to the rarest, most obscure and sought-after soundtracks, which he plays in his DJ sets and selections published on the Wax Up! project blog and with the Jazz Re:Found collective.2012 saw the publication of his first monograph Take Your Pleasure Seriously for Lazy Dog Press.In 2021 he published the essay Anima & Inchiostro for Utet.
He lives and works in Milan, on the Navigli, where he has had his studio since 2007.