This phase of my course immerses me in lots of Making Days, and it is never enough of them for me! I am decidedly excited and nervous about going public and showcasing my works. Last year, I spoke with an art dealer and asked her what she was looking for in emerging artists. She said: a distinctive style and ‘it has to be some ‘chic’, you know”. Her words stuck in my mind and I have always been reflecting on them, gazing at other artists’ artworks in galleries and museums. I think she is very precise in her definition of what makes the artwork special, at least I think I understand what she means. The “chic” is a unity of unique style and quality of work, the quality of its implementation and materials.

Below are two artworks from my “Garden/Riviera” project to showcase this summer.

Below is a very initial stage of my next development, which I will use the three separate wooden boards again.

I like to work with wooden boards because they behave how I want them to with the mediums I use. They also look interesting and unconventional. The only problem is that they are heavy. Last week, I spent two hours in a DIY shop buying them and trying to find a solution for hanging them on the wall in the gallery. This is a problem because no one will let me drill the walls. I had to research that on YouTube and learn how the gallerists mount heavy artworks. They use a special system called a “French cleat”, so I need to buy ready-made kits on Amazon, which are plenty.

Quick sketches for compositional decisions/options:

Another important discovery I made this month is the White Wall company. https://www.whitewall.com/fr

All prominent and renowned photographers use their services. Ordering a box with samples was very easy and inexpensive: the types of surfaces this company can print any image. I plan to test some of my works printed on various kinds of aluminium dibond. I am convinced I should try.