Thirty months to NYAA

And lucky for us, the weather is getting better!

Lovely people of Montreal, come see our gorgeous work space Thursday the 20th of August at 6pm at 5333 Casgrain suite 513. We are having an open studio evening with music, artsy folks and refreshments! Every time I walk down the labyrinth of a corridor to get to my studio I think of that time a few years ago when I was desperately looking for a place to work. My room was too small to contain the big pieces I wanted to paint and my mother was afraid the fumes would kill us both. The spaces I found were either too expensive or already taken, each attempt to relocate failed. Then one day I landed my first little spot, a corner in a sketchy apartment. In my dreams however I pictured an industrial loft with high ceilings. They say dreams come true. We are a year later and I have my real studio. This is how new couples feel - utterly smitten.

I am getting a bit anxious for it to be finished, I already found another topic for a great glazing experiment!

2015 is well underway and I am slowly catching up on things I've done in 2014. Those four paintings were painted for my Malaise show. I am happy how they turned out, especially Buzzer #35 as I had painted it back in 2012 or 2011. I struggled with it a lot. It had a figure that I got the guts to erase. I like the quietness that it has acquired. The figure was distracting and now the viewer can feel the atmosphere of that room. Far away also had a previous state, a younger sibling. Back in Grenoble I started one, but had to rip it off the stretcher and squeeze it into my suitcase. I love the colours on it and can't wait to varnish it to see them pop. Portraits in the dark is the difficult child. People liked it, but I am not convinced. It needs to be away from my eyes for a little while, It needs to be apprivoisé. Almost home is one of my favorites. The different effect I managed to achieve are really mind boggling to me now. I am a little heartbroken that I will not see it again! If you are reading, dear owner, let me know it is doing ok, send me a picture of it on the wall.

I do not know how your year started but mine began with a lovely discovery: Vilhelm Hammershøi - a XIX century Danish painter. There is something quietly stunning in his paintings. They are almost fully monochromatic, to such degree that it was rumored that he was colour blind (which he wasn't).  His simple compositions and wonderful handling of lights is so inspiring. I can relate to this desire to simplify and create a focal point that might not be that interesting on the surface.

- My Azorean adventure was a great finish to all the craziness! Thank you all who have been part of this year, whether from far or close. I wish you a fantastic 2015 and stay tuned for some more art!

It is done. The show is over (well technically it is still hanging in the gallery for a little while). It is a strange feeling, similar to when Christmas and New Year are over. A little bit nostalgic. The vernissage was wonderful! I had lovely commentary on my work both from friends and strangers. It is validating to hear people say things about your paintings that you are trying to express. Now looking at the pieces I presented they really seem to be coming from the same world. I left for a vacation right after the event and haven't painted or even drawn in ages. I already feel the restlessness in my fingers. Ordering new canvases this time of year might be tricky, but I have a few older paintings to work on. I should try working with a different colour palette....

Finally one piece done, four to go! This one has been with me since the beginning of my undergrad. I loved the colours but the figure that used to be there was ruining everything. I am feeling the stress of the show creeping up. Suddenly there aren't enough hours in the day (sleep should be an option, not a requirement). Luckily I am more efficient now than a few weeks before. I have made the final selection of all the new pieces I'll present on the 20th of November (save the date!). For one, I used (with her permission) a profile picture of my studio mate. It just fits so wonderfully with the others! My head is already booming with new projects, a series of portraits that needs to be completed by next August, a project related to instagram that will hopefully see light of day before New Year and then the mantra-like thought about the New York Academy of Art. At some point I will have to apply!

Painting is a funny thing. I've been completely terrorized to come back to the studio. A few weeks have past in a dull, uninspired and overall grey state. Something finally woke up (probably panic, as the deadline for the show is approaching so quickly) and I went to the studio. On my way there, my head was spinning with lists of things to do, paintings to compete, canvases to buy, drawings to plan. But as I sat down, mixed the colours and worked, things started to seem so much easier. Ideas started flowing.

I haven't done one of these in a long time. I have discovered Chelsea James a while back. Immediately I fell in love her palette as well as the planes of her landscapes. With few well placed details she is able to beautifully translate the atmospheric perspective and density of air. I know very little about Chelsea, but I do follow her instagram! I also hope to see her work in person one day.

Weeks are a mix of IT work, sketching and painting, but mostly IT. I am only now understanding how right I was when I decided not to make of art my hobby but a career. It's difficult to pursue it part time when you work, the creative muscles harden and atrophy quickly! I am thinking of working on a set of completely different paintings for the show. Stage 3 is affecting a bunch of the pieces I am working on and I am not longer sure what to do about it.

Painting is a strange occupation. You are in a state of constant flux. I have found the key five stages of artistic production. 1. You have a great idea, it's the best idea, it's going to be a masterpiece! It will be a new era for your art, you are learning and this is the breakthrough! 2. Gosh this is exciting! Everything is great, the reference material, the tools, the sketches/models! 3. This is shit. Complete, total, shit. Why have you ever though that art was a good career for you? This feeling usually occurs on the second session but can last an excruciatingly long while. 4. You keep on working and coming to terms that whether you like it or not you have to finish, the sharpness of the negativity quiets down and you are left with a "meh" feeling as you finish the piece. 5. As a few weeks or months pass, you take the piece out again and suddenly it's appeal is partly restored, not fully but substantially!

There is a project in the works. A big project. A group show in November! I am very excited and terribly anxious, the usual mix. We've been brainstorming for a week now, trying to unify our work. I am following a bunch of incredibly inspirational contemporary artists on tumblr and instagram. I feel like I am close to some sort of breakthrough and that in order to do that I must experiment. I am thinking of including a few drawings or watercolors in the show. I am so antsy!

Day Four (ii). Shortest: 1 min Longest: 66 min Reference photos by Marco Anelli.

Day Four (i). Shortest: 1 min Longest: 66 min Reference photos by Marco Anelli.

I have finally worked up the nerve to erase a figure in one of my first paintings. I was much more interested in the atmosphere and the colours anyway. I am reassured by the fact that Matisse worked on his Bathers by a River for eight years.