I was born in Poland and started oil painting at the age of 16. My technique was self-taught with pretty much home made ‘ingredients’. I felt that choosing an artistic career was not an option at that time, as not perceived serious enough by the society- due to the perception you couldn’t earn your living as an artist, plus the fact that Poland was just coming out of communism were art was too much associated with the propaganda. So I decided to keep painting as a hobby.

 

In 2003 I moved to the South of France where I have been living ever since. Provence is an amazing place for creativity, you are surrounded by beauty: a large variety of wonderful landscapes and well preserved heritage – you literally breath the history! So here I am giving you an opportunity to take a break in your busy lives to dream and travel through my paintings. 

 

What technique do I use? I create figurative oil paintings from life. I find inspiration in beauty of the surroundings: trees, flowers, houses and ruines and transpose them on canvas with my own interpretation. The artwork has even more meaning if accompanied by a story or a legend, so whenever it is possible, I try to add this additional touch to the artwork. I paint ideally in plein air as this allows me truly to connect with the place on the energy level. 

 

I have been very much influenced by post-impressionist movement, in particular by Joaquin Sorolla and John Singer Sargent. When I came to France, I met Jean-Christophe Gondouin, an amazing painter from the South of France who has been my mentor since that time. 

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Justyna