My thoughts in 2023
I published the below short article in 2018. Just over 5 years later, and with the benefit of countless discussions with other fine artists, visits to exhibitions, reading books on art, design and architecture, I was intrigued to read again my own words.
I find that I am still fascinated by the same intricacies of objects, buildings, people and products that although often go unnoticed, they are detrimental to how we experience things around us.
I have moved on from looking at eggs; my art now draws inspiration from buildings, clothes, sofas and chairs. Nevertheless, the element that excites me about these things is still how the underlying consideration given to their design and very existence affects the end users. Why this sofa is much nicer than that one? And why this chair is more comfortable than the other? How can this building be more functional and interesting compared to the building next door?
I continue to observe, read and make art celebrating the little victories of simple things around us, making a subtle difference to how we experience the world.
Discover simple
This is not an easy question to answer. Eggs can make a big difference when you make an omelette or when you bake a cake. But art; how is it even possible a tub of eggs to make a difference to your art? Well, it does play an important role – a tab of 15 eggs can actually make you create one of the most sophisticated and beautiful artworks you have ever made. The recipe is very simple.
Following a quick walk in the super market (where I bought my 15 eggs…), I kept thinking how simple things in life can affect you in a creative way. I saw lonely people shopping, I saw couples, I saw young people and I saw older people. Everyone lived that very moment, just picking up cheese or milk or vegetables…or eggs. And I kept thinking how this can be made into art.
Little hint, I had been to an art exhibition 20 minutes before I went to the super market. The subject was Balance, and the artists had literally 48 hours to create. In such a sort notice, I realised your biggest challenge as an artist is not to make the art piece, but mainly to think about it. This is where the 15 eggs come to play.
Your pen and pencil, your brush and paint sometimes should be inspired by the unnoticeable things. Sometimes you need to find beauty in those aspects of life that usually go unnoticed, are of detrimental importance and no one really cares about. Because when you deal with these unimportant things you have space and time to actually think about the bigger picture. Give yourself the chance to explore the connection and the importance of the subject to yourself, to its environemnt or to that very moment you observed it. Make art out of the intangible and for a moment forget the weight of the tangible.
This is definitely not a technical article, it is though a shout out to those ones who sometimes struggle to find inspiration. All you need to do, is open your eyes and see the person or the item standing next to you. The moment, the person, the item might be unimportant to most. But for you, at that specific moment, it is the centre of the world – it has your complete attention and it really deserves to be the centre of your next art work.
The answer you must be looking for, should be beyond eggs or plastic tubs; you should be looking at the symbolism of this quite ordinary items. As with the ancient Greek mythology the eggs represent something, they stand for something, instead of having a literal meaning. This is all about art. Communicate a message, don’t be afraid to make simple things stand out with your art and explore the endless possibilities and subjects of the environment around to you.
Fine art and design 