I am a great fan of buying second hand, vintage, or antiques. It is economical, environmentally responsible, unique and not wasteful. Much of what I possess was picked up at some antique shop or market and is on at least it's second life with me. I love beautiful things, and while buying second hand I firmly believe that old should never trump beautiful. The goal is not to be non materialistic but rather to be responsible and resourceful. Finding things I love is a type of treasure hunt. The finding of the diamond in the rough.
These treasure hunts afford a huge amount of inspiration for my artwork as well. Colours, textures, patterns and styles mix and blend together in a swirl of epochs and directions creating combinations that are unique to that moment in time. Art deco furniture beside turkish carpets, plastic layered over wool, rough wood near chinese enamel. These contrasts inspire me to create greater contrasts in my own art. They provide the elements of surprise in overall schemes and motives. They are for lack of a better word; interesting.
To create interest in art is a subject that has occupied artists for centuries- composition is nothing other than taking an everyday subject, whether it be landscape, animal, portrait, object, or design and making it appeal to the observer. Finding and presenting the beauty in the ordinary. Introducing the viewer to the uniqueness of the subject. Making it interesting. Composition draws the viewer in, balance allows them to linger over the work of art. And therefore composition and balance, comprised often of contrast, are cornerstones of good art. Sometimes they are striking, pulling you toward the work of art with combined horror and delight. Other times they are subtle creating a harmony that allows your soul to relax and breathe in the presence of such simple beauty. Either way they are essential. Something to be sought by the artist and pursued in its fleetingness.
There are very calculated ways of achieving balance in a composition. The production of a large series of sketches from different perspectives with different focal points is one such method. But there is also an intuitive way to achieve it, and in my opinion this intuition is the result of training the eye. The eye can be trained in many different ways but my favorite is through the lens of my camera as I stumble through a world teaming with contrasting impulses. The lens smooths the surface. Evening out the colours and textures. reducing volume and depth and leaving behind contrast, contour and lines.
Today I am sharing my inspirational photos of Les Puces. The largest Parisien market complex. It takes up an entire section of Paris and sprawls from building to building spilling out onto the street. The inside shops are luxurious and glossy. Well appointed and interesting, while the outer streets begin with stand after stand of fake sport brand products and digress into piles of dickensian squalor in which deteriorating clothing snuggles up against partially disassembled ancient electronics. Here and there a beautiful piece of oversized antique furniture stands marooned amoungst the rags and kitchen gadgets, exposed to the rain, and suggesting that it may have been stolen at some point in its recent past. Police check papers, and groups of people huddle under the underpass. Two worlds meet in one market- The rich and the poor, the native and the immigrant, the prosperous and the desperate. Mimicking themselves the contrast so evident in the offerings on display. Inside the vendors collect around well laid tables to share lunch with a bottle of something nice and a few of their nicer pieces of tableware. Outside they huddle together under umbrellas with paper cups of coffee and cigarettes. Camaraderie by class, sharing and eating together, carving out a life amoungst their goods, becoming themselves a living part of the seething microcosm that is Les Puces.
I was fascinated by this market. Both by its its goods and its bads. It is a place where anything is possible. You might discover a Rembrant or alternately a master forger may make his fortune. Beautiful antiques may find new homes or stolen goods be quietly dispensed with. It is a place of contrasts. And despite those contrasts, perhaps because of them, it is interesting. It has that appeal that a shopping center could never have, no matter how great the architect or specialized the shops. I hope to be able to distill some of that interest into my own art. A process which can never be achieved overnight but which may hopefully progress in a positive way as I grow and progress as an artist.
Note- The photos in this post are primarily taken inside the market. I decided not to walk around snapping photographs in the more questionable areas.
Where do you gather inspiration? How do you make your work or environment interesting? What fascinates you? Leave me a comment and let me know.
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