What’s the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?
I stretch in my bed, shower, and practice yoga for thirty minutes. I listened to the world news, read and reply to my emails.
What inspires you to create every day?
Love.
What does your work space look like?
A spacious, sunny studio overlooking a garden. You can hear the birds singing in the sky through the large, sliding glass windows. It has a ‘plein air’ feeling.
Describe the core of your technique or style.
Color is the core! Color is my passion. As Goethe said in his essay Traité des Couleurs, “color holds a prominent place in the series of primordial phenomena….this is why color as a prime element in art can be used and can collaborate to the highest aesthetics purpose”.
Color touches the human soul and creates emotion. The psychological effect of the power of the colors is obvious because it creates a vibration of the soul. To quote Deleuze, “art seeks to use the sensorial world to penetrate the soul’s spiritual world…it tries to prove that the human potential is not limited to transformation, but that it has conquered the creation’s dimension”.
What are your top 3 studio essentials?
L’étincelle (the spark), my white painter outfit, and jazz music are my studio essentials. Preparing the paint is a long process which takes time.
How do you know or decide when an artwork is finished?
When I have the intimate conviction that my art work is finished. I spend time with my work. When I can read clearly the message it contains, it is done! I share Friedrich Nietzsche’s philosophy that “art shall, before anything, embellish life…and make us agreeable to others”. So if art shall define beauty, does it means it is beautiful for all viewers? Associated with the aesthetic of the other we have to be humble in our artistic expression. Artist creation must be undertaken with love or not at all.
What do you like to do to unwind after a day’s work?
A nice dinner by the fire place in winter, or outdoor in summer.
What’s your overall favorite aspect of the creative process?
The illusion between the artist and the canvass and the goal of communicating with the world, as the purpose, pattern, people, are at the heart of life. When I see the spiritual idea observed within myself, when I feel the pleasure of the visualized beauty of the colors, and when I put into reality what I consider to be important, are all the aspects of the creative process.
Thank you, Catherine! See more of her stunning artwork on Singulart
