When did you develop an interest for painting portraits?
I started painting when I was very young and was interested in painting pretty much everything. Portraiture is only one of the directions I want to go, but a very important one.
How would you describe your work to someone who has never seen it before?
My goal is to capture the essence – whether it is a portrait or a landscape or any other subject I choose. My style is changing all the time and I always try new things and not all of my experiments are successful. My life credo is “Change is the only constant” I can’t work in the same style or be interested in a particular theme for a long time and I am very happy that I can’t. It is sad when artists get stuck in the same style for the rest of their lives just because people buy it. To me it is not honest and to be a happy and successful artist you have to be honest with yourself first and if you are, I believe there always will be people who appreciate your work.
You have mentioned that you decided to search for answers in paintings of Old Masters for structure. Why was that?
To me Old Masters are like a grammar book of a foreign language. You have to respect it and know it. I always did and I always will respect what they did. However, if you get stuck only in the era of the Old Masters you are heading for a dead end. There are lots of artists who mimic the masters and I always have an awkward feeling when looking at their work.
There many artists I respect and learn from – whether old masters or new ones. To me an inspiring artist is someone who thinks differently. Philip Stark is a contemporary master in design and an interesting persona, Neri Oxman is a genius in science of material ecology and architecture, Alexander McQuinn was a genius in fashion, Richard Branson is a genius in entrepreneurship, Irving Penn in photography. Picasso was a genius in the art of living life to the fullest not only in painting. I think an excellent cook is an artist too.
Being an artist is not only how you paint, but also how you think, express yourself and communicate with the whole world and it does not really matter what medium you choose to do that.
Are there any areas you want to explore?
Anthropology, German language, architecture.
How do you maintain momentum in your art practice?
By exposing myself to something new, especially to something that is not related to painting. It all feeds my imagination and when I get back to my easel I have an ongoing momentum rather than a fragmental one.
Was your experience on Star Portraits different from what you thought it was going to be?
It was new and different. I did not have any expectations. I was curious. I am glad I decided to try as it has shaped my idea more clearly as to what I want to do in my career and even more importantly, what I don’t want to do. Watching the filming crew work on making it all happen was great fun.
Where do you see yourself and your art in the future?
Somewhere nice.