In my figurative work, the subjects often look far away, chasing a thought or a memory all the way to the horizon, whilst bathing in their own mind. Whether the subject is human or material, there is a high level of abstract in my work. I like to mix detailed subjects with more stylized and rough backgrounds. Accentuate the contrast between pencil work and hard paint brushes
''Above all, a living thing wants to discharge its strength. Life itself is will to power. Self-preservation is only one of the instincts and most infrequent consequence of this. In order to be able to create, we must give ourselves greater freedom than has been granted us before''.
The man looks at the beast. His look is curious but also aches for answers. Perhaps he feels sorry for himself and envies the Beast. Or is this an encounter in which the beast looks at himself? The man is sketched and with no colour, naked. All he is wearing is the desire of reconnection with his primitive status. The beast is embellished with a saddle, the mantle of fog which recalls domestication. The servile path he chose to follow to its own demise. The beast appears calm and resigned to live his tasks. The man doesn't. He expects a reason. Maybe the answer is all here, and the only way to maintain calm is to resign and suppress his primordial call to display strength and run free. We all work for our colourful saddle but we don't even know what we are asking for. Then, we wonder why we are tormented. What is the man thinking? This is the key of everything.
The beauty of 'unfinished'
The creative process
The process of creating a new subject is one of the most magical encounters.
As you stroke the canvas, at every brush you see new shapes and shadows come alive, and it feels like meeting someone new for the first time.
I am not a very patient painter. As I get to know someone new on the canvas, I want to know everything there is to know about them and it's very exciting, but also quite demanding. By sharing that pocket of time and seeing the faces and bodies take form, I fall in love with the process and remind myself of the magic that can happen when you explore the unknown and abandon yourself to 'whatever will be will be'. Since I am aware of my lack of patience, lately I'm slowly training myself to stop and leave a project unfinished for a bit. The canvas would just stay there staring at me for days, witnessing my mood swings and occasionally provoke me with a wink as the light meets its surface.
I don't think anything in this world will ever be perfect seen by the human eye, but to stop for a while and look at something that is yet to be completed, teaches me to slow down and try to enjoy the beauty of the road ahead with all of its possibilities.
Add comment
Comments