As early as 1830, in the area surrounding Florence and Lucca, Italy, the need to express oneself artistically took root and grew in our family. Four generations of artists (that we know of) have flourished. Aleardo Ferraressi and his brother-in-law, Chesare Paoli, worked staff and stone together, as well as many other creative endeavors appropriate to their era in Italy.
	Immigrating to America via Ellis Island with their young families, the pair found work applying their artistic talents to the booming building trade. Ferraressi and Paoli were quickly put to work, building with their beloved Travertine marble for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. This led to more work, bringing the flavor of Florence to many churches in the area: St. Vibian's Cathedral, St. Vincent's Church, the Scottish Rights Masonic Temple, St. Agnes' Church, and the Mormon Temple on Wilshire Blvd. Their experience in sculpture and plaster casting was then applied to the war effort, making molds for fighter aircraft parts - then on to Hollywood, casting props for motion pictures at Fox, 20th Century, MGM, and Warner Brothers Studios.
Witnessing this Italian "whirlwind work ethic" was young Lala, daughter of Aleardo and Natalina. This must have influenced her, as she has been painting in oil for over thirty years.
	Among other things, she owned and operated Flynn's Artcraft in Long Beach, California, for many years.
Patric, son of Lala, inspired by his family of origin and his need to create, has been involved in the Arts most of his life. Testing the waters of sculpture while in college, he briefly abandoned his chisels for brushes, only to return to his ancestral love of stone.
	Mike, son of Patric, blessed with a lineage of creative minds, was drawn toward the Arts before he even knew he "had to": macrame', sand candles, leathercraft, and metal sculpture as an adolescent, then painting and sculpture to meet the need. It wasn't until his father put a hammer and a chisel in his hands and a stone on his bench, that he was able to return, in spirit, to the cobbled streets of Italy, some 170 years ago.