France
During the early 90's we were on holiday in the south of France and I was staring longingly towards the Lubéron mountains and the small little villages scattered around in the landscape, wishing that I will one day be able to spend some time painting in France, awish that has been granted over and over again. During 2004 and again in 2006 we went barging on the canals in France with a couple of friends.
It is always difficult to paint out of your comfort zone, but this was pushing it to the extreme. But so rewarding. The landscape around me was moving in slow motion and I tried to capture points of interest in the landscape and my companions
The first philosophers were sons of Athens . Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. These early thinkers believed in trying things for size. To be able to entertain thought without accepting it. “Art” Plato said “is the capacity to make and involves a course of proper reasoning”. Aristotle was an advocate of the hands on approach. The creation of art is a personal dialogue with art itself. Aristotle also believed that artists needed a touch of madness, humour and a love of amusement to function affectively.
Time is the greatest enemy of an artist, especially for me. As I did not want to miss one little thing, it makes you so much more aware of the landscape and everything around you It is as though you are taking visual notes all the time. The paintings are free and on the spur of the moment. The most challenging is not to be in anybody's space, not to get the other people full of paint and to be able to throw your brushes down at any given moment.
In situations like this, it isn't only the landscape that is of interest, but the people surrounding you are always intriguing. What they are doing and the way you react towards them and yourself. We all loved the being outside in nature and I wanted to capture that very pleasurable moments of sharing with friends.
The experience to attempt painting in situations that is not always easy is richly rewarded by engraving certain information en scenes in your unconscious being to be taken out whenever you are alone in your studio and when you are far removed from opportunities like this. Sharing with friends and nature all play a role to enhance your own feeling of belonging and loving what you do.
More paintings from France
