Artist of the Week
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Artist: Fleur Simon
Artform: Artist What does your work focus on? I am primarily an oil painter, however I do play around with ceramics and painting in Epoxy Resin. Although I used to work figuratively, my work has taken a very abstracted turn in the last year, which has been far more cathartic. My palette is usually quite natural and earthy, lots of blues and greens – these colours are echoed in my ceramics glazes too. |
Where have you studied?
I completed my foundation at Central Saint Martins UAL, and then decided to do a semester in Paris at an American college named Paris College of Art. I then returned to London and started a Fine Art Painting BA at City and Guilds of London Art School, of which I am in my final year now.
Tell us a bit about your example painting (pictured above).
This is an abstract oil painting on wood which I sold in June. I started painting on wood a lot last year and this is one of the quick sketches which I think worked quite well. When you work on wood, bits of paint get caught up in the grain of the wood which can be quite beautiful and add depth (begins to look like atmospheric perspective), so that is why the material appealed to me. This painting was very quick and sketchy, I used a brush or two, but mainly my palette knife with thick oil paint (no mediums or anything).
I completed my foundation at Central Saint Martins UAL, and then decided to do a semester in Paris at an American college named Paris College of Art. I then returned to London and started a Fine Art Painting BA at City and Guilds of London Art School, of which I am in my final year now.
Tell us a bit about your example painting (pictured above).
This is an abstract oil painting on wood which I sold in June. I started painting on wood a lot last year and this is one of the quick sketches which I think worked quite well. When you work on wood, bits of paint get caught up in the grain of the wood which can be quite beautiful and add depth (begins to look like atmospheric perspective), so that is why the material appealed to me. This painting was very quick and sketchy, I used a brush or two, but mainly my palette knife with thick oil paint (no mediums or anything).
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Why do you paint?
Because when it goes well it can make you happier than most things. So I suppose it is for that thrill of getting it right, after many attempts of getting it wrong. What are you influenced by? All sorts of things influence my work I suppose - natural forms, space, moods and traumas all feed into it. I am a big fan of Abstract Expressionist work; artists such as Joan Mitchel and Helen Frankenthaler influenced me to work fully abstracted, and do away with figurative forms altogether which has been quite liberating. Katharina Grosse is another great artist (kind of a modern day abstract expressionist with graffiti) whose work I have been looking at. More artists would include Adrian Ghenie, Howard Hodgkin, Peter Doig and Grayson Perry (pots, not tapestries). |
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What is the most interesting thing you have done to date?
In November I appeared on Landscape Artist of the Year 2017 and won the ‘wildcard prize’ - it definitely was not the most interesting, but it was really exciting!
What are you afraid of?
Running out of ideas, or loosing motivation. Every now an again, the drive to paint or create goes away for a bit, and it leaves me feeling a bit hopeless. So I suppose my fear would be if it went away for good.
In November I appeared on Landscape Artist of the Year 2017 and won the ‘wildcard prize’ - it definitely was not the most interesting, but it was really exciting!
What are you afraid of?
Running out of ideas, or loosing motivation. Every now an again, the drive to paint or create goes away for a bit, and it leaves me feeling a bit hopeless. So I suppose my fear would be if it went away for good.
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What challenges have you set for yourself?
I have set myself the challenge of creating at least one medium/large ceramic pot a week. I find that even if it doesn’t feed into my painting, it is always good to hone a craft in something. This way, when I eventually leave art school, I will have a skill to take away with me. What is more important, talent or hard work? Hard Work. I think a lot of producing work is down to hard work and time management. A lot of your day is spent setting up, and packing up (washing your brushes etc). If you haven't got the energy to do this, you really lower your chances of creating something good. However, talent definitely comes into play if you want to create great artwork. Maybe it is not a very popular opinion in contemporary art, but I do believe you need to be talented to create something great. |
