"Arte povera means literally ‘poor art’ "

"Arte povera was a radical Italian art movement from the late 1960s to 1970s whose artists explored a range of unconventional processes and non traditional ‘everyday’ materials"
http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/a/arte-povera

"An artistic movement that originated in Italy in the 1960s, combining aspects of conceptual, minimalist, and performance art, and making use of worthless or common materials such as earth or newspaper, in the hope of subverting the commercialisation of art."
"1960s: Italian, literally 'impoverished art', from arte 'art' + paver (feminine of paver 'needy').
- Google Definitions 

When I work, I will typically work in oil paints and primarily onto canvas or fabric.
The idea of Arte Povera is very intriguing to me, for it is possibly a way in which I can develop my way of exploring my craft and specialism.
Exploring artists who work in unconventional ways will definitely be of use to me, for it will allow me to experiment in ways I would possibly disregard ordinarily. Also exploring theory alongside this will be of much use to me for I will be able to back up new ways of painting and creating, by studying the work and technique of others.

Jannis Kounellis 

Jannis Kounellis has created a very intriguing work, made by dying wool. This idea of combining the natural world with the man made is something I could explore within my own experimentation. I have worked with wool and knitting on previous projects and this could be a way to take it further.

http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/kounellis-untitled-t07074