Looking back on the year 2020, I realized with gratitude how much I was inspired for my series of paintings The Secret Place: Re-centering, Dance in the Rain, Rest, Transformation I and II, Celebration and Healing on which I'm currently working.
Healing
In progress when I ‘caught’ the famous coronavirus ... Irony of life! I am indeed healed, although going through this covid-19 was not easy at all! A picture of the painting will follow when finished... But of course, let each of the paintings speak to you personally! Each of us has his own interpretation... These are the choices that I am making and that I wish you to make in 2021: refocus on the Essential when everything is uproar in you and around you, dance in the rain despite the threats hanging over you, let you be transformed despite the impossibility of going back and being able to visualize what will be next, stay in rest in the One who loves you and cares for you, and with thankfulness, celebrate Life and the One who gives it! Fullness of joy in 2021!
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![]() Several of you have asked me to explain more about my artistic process. It will take several blog posts as I have so much to say about it. At the same time, it is true that, if I paint, it is because it is difficult to put these things into words! As described in the Process page, my artistic approach is, above all, the search for inspiration from the Divine. I receive a word, an impression, an atmosphere, colors, an emotion, an image… sometimes nothing. I do not necessarily begin with a sketch in my head or a ready-made image. Sometimes I draw a sketch, other times I begin with nothing more than a blank canvas. I choose the colors first, which defines an atmosphere and then I apply the different techniques. I let "things" rise up inside, as I say. I try to stay connected to the Divine. Ideas come as the tableau progresses. I am very slow in my work, in the way I compose my paintings. I let myself be inspired quietly. I also play a lot with the different elements before gluing them; I move them, I observe what pleases me, what comes out, the atmosphere that emerges. Everything I am going to describe to you now, I only saw and understood retrospectively, looking back at my finished paintings. I was not at all aware of it when I created them. It is by dint of seeing repetitions, gestures that come again and again naturally, shapes that seem to carry a symbolism - which belongs only to me! - that I began to ponder about it. My paintings reflect a certain conception of life and of its meaning and, without any doubt, of my own spiritual quest and my inner representations. My "symbolism" - The atmosphere, the light Light is often found at the top of my paintings, as God and Heaven are commonly placed high up in the collective Western imagination (which is only a partial reflection of reality). It is accentuated by the contrast with the darker, lower part, that represents the earth, with its vicissitudes or, in any case, the daily realities in which humans struggle, we struggle. The light seeks to make its way through this opacity and to bring the Hope that it carries within it. - Characters ![]() As a child psychiatrist, I cannot help but be interested in human beings! My paintings are therefore frequently populated by characters who, in most cases, are engaged in conversation together. Dialogue has a particularly important part. The God I know is an eminently relational God. This vertical relationship between Him and humans is symbolized in my creations by the characters' ascension upwards, becoming clearer as they approach and expose themselves to the Light. The horizontal dimension of the relationship between humans is symbolized by the fact that my characters are often in twos or threes, and that they discuss together, sometimes even help each other. The “decryption” of watches and other shapes, cracks and collected objects will follow in a future post. This description should enable you to understand my creations with an even richer light. Of course, I remain convinced that the real richness lies in what each individual, you, what you see with your inner imagination and your own specific sensitivity!
See you soon! The CoviD-19 crisis has had numerous unexpected consequences. Some of them, fortunately, are positive: my website valerieziehli.art is one of them. I took advantage of these weeks of semi-confinement to finally build it! A very painful torticollis followed during the past 2 months, due to a malposition in front of the computer for so many long hours. Alas, no gain without pain, as the old saying goes! So here it is, like a newborn baby, called to evolve, to be pampered, refined and updated.
I am also inaugurating this blog in order to share my passion for the arts in general: painting, of course, but also writing, sculpture, music and song, dance… I desire to deepen my reflection on creativity, the role of the arts and the artist in this world, the creative process, the link between spirituality and art, as well as giving you advice, sharing technical tips… in summary, tackling all kinds of subjects related to the arts. For this first article, here is a simple poem that was inspired by the name of my studio. The name was certainly not chosen by chance. When I inaugurated it, shortly after the year 2000 in Morrens, it was a place reserved only for me, where I was able to catch my breath, far from the “soon-to-be-adolescent” triplets that agitated my home, a place of retreat and recharging my batteries, above all, a place of connection with the divine Breath. Like a breath… Like a breath, you come Like a breath, you embrace me Like a breath, you permeate me, you fill me up Your Breath I hope, your Breath I long for Your Breath I invoke, your Breath I wait for Like a breath, you twirl Like a breath, you whirl Like a breath, you transform me, you shape me Your Breath I await, your Breath I hear Like a light breeze that revives my song Your Breath draws me, your Breath stretches me Your Breath I long, your Breath I inhale In your Breath, I let myself be immersed By your Breath, I am quieted You hug me, you embrace me You affirm me, confirm me Sharing Breath, centering Breath Like a pause in my life, Recreational pause, creative pause Re-creative pause... Will you come along with me on this journey of reflection and discovery which, like the carrier pigeon that I am, might also make some detours through distant lands? I hope so and, until we meet again in a future blog post, I would like to take you by the hand, to explore and visit the valerieziehli.art website together, hoping that this will enthuse and inspire you... Don't forget to leave your email address in the box on the side, to find out more! See you soon! |
AuthorValerie Ziehli is a contemporary artist who works in Sion (Valais), Switzerland. Archives
Janvier 2021
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