INTERVIEW : ROMAINE KUONEN & HADI MOHAMMADKHANI

1)What was the incipit of your artistic career? Romaine: I was already taught as a child by my artistically active father in classical painting and technique. Many naturalistic and figurative exact paintings were created in this years. Later I wanted to break away from this and started with watercolor in modern painting and began the path as a Contemporary artist. I consciously decided against academic training in painting. I had the great need and urge, and to face my self, my intuition and my feelings in painting. Techniques can be learned, but the inner world needs its own outlet and space to unfold and express itself.

2)How does the inspiration of Hadi in his profession come about and how does he manage to find it?
Hadi: We do not choose subjects, they come to us by themselves. When we find a suitable spiritual ground for this flow and have actually refined ourselves over many years and become a conduit through which feelings flow freely, paintings are formed. This is exactly what children do instinctively and unconsciously, and the result of this pure encounter with emotions is unparalleled artistic masterpieces.

3)Tell us about your artistic collaboration with Hadi Mohammed Khani                                         Romaine: The versatility of artistic activity and the human component excited me from the beginning of the common path and an exchange about art, culture, poetry and stage work arose, which is particularly present in Hadi.                 Since Hadi is also a painter, the idea and a first attempt at a joint work was soon born. The basis of our joint works are mystical stories, surreal figures and a generous mixing of different cultures, fabrics and social events across borders. The expression of these images is energetic, delicate and at times ethereally dynamic. Thus it is that between East and West, across revolutions, art has been reborn for us in the sign of the times in its particularity. Our works are the breaking point, the moment of decision between being and not being, between nothing and something. We are both also individually present at exhibitions. But the joint works bring us inspiration and exciting developments that spur each other on experimentally.

4)What are the artistic currents that Hadi prefers?
Hadi: If the question here is related to artistic styles, I must say that they often do not separate artworks based on the artists' own styles, and perhaps this flow may be of little importance to them. From the point of view of great artists, there is only one style, and that is the personal style of the artist who has achieved independence of expression in his art.
Considering that in addition to painting, I am also active in the field of directing and acting in physical and musical theater, I have realized that the new world needs new and very modern artistic trends. Man today needs a platform to reach self-knowledge, and art and painting, which we are talking about here, are quite helpful.

5)In your opinion, is Europe doing enough to promote art and cultural disciplines?
Hadi: Considering that we are artists from Iran and Switzerland who are active internationally, we have found that the platform for artistic activities in Europe is very good, but not enough. Because art is constantly growing and the foundations of this growth must be provided in harmony with it. Interaction between all branches of art is what we need today and with this aim I have founded "Body Magic Group" to open new doors in art for us.

Romaine: The times we live in are characterized by uncertainty and upheaval. In such times, art has always had great significance.  Art inevitably deals with people's emotions, can bring healing or depict and process hardship. More and more new ways have to be found so that art in all its facets finds its place and above all strengthens each other. The promotion of different arts in their commonalities, there is still much potential for development.

6)Can you tell us about the techniques you use?
Hadi: Often we try to use techniques that no one has entered before. Individual and group creations are among the most important parts of presenting our works, and we believe that each person's art should be close to his inner self in such a way that we can know his inner self from his artwork and talk about it.
For this reason, we have invented our own unique technique and style and named it "photopin“.

Romaine: We deliberately do not use commercially available technical tools. It is a craft specially developed by Hadi that comes into play in our joint art.

7)What are the fundamental human messages at the basis of her artistic production? Romaine: Our common interests in mysticism, the mysterious in cultures and religions, has shaped our work so far. We both come from different regions and have different cultural backgrounds. But we keep discovering the great commonalities of human existence, the emotions, the longings and the suffering, the happiness and the visions for a better life, no matter where people live.

8)Let's talk about her favorite subjects of hers.
Hadi:Are there any interesting subjects in art?
If so, my answer is:
My favorite subjects are music, physical and musical theater, writing and painting, and I prefer to create a space that serves my feelings by interacting with all these arts.
That is, in the end, it is this feeling that takes all these into its service and creates a work of art.
So, as a result, my favorite subjects are completely rooted in my art and inner feelings.

Romaine: I love to communicate with people through art, on the one hand, by triggering emotions in the viewer, and on the other hand, that especially in contemporary art, a work of art is never finished. In the abstraction and in the emotions that a painting expresses, new thoughts can arise in the viewer every day. That is one of my favorite themes. To surprise myself and the viewer every day anew. The actual process of painting is hard work for me, a suffering and not pleasant. I live for the moment when the work is finished.


9)When do you understand that a work is finished?
Hadi: We come to the conclusion when that painting is successful in relation to us.
This is directly related to human intuition.
As I mentioned before that the subjects choose us, I must say here that it is the painting itself that announces its completion at that moment as it grows.

Romaine: During the process of creating our image, we are in regular intense exchange. The moment when a picture is finished, fits for both of us together. It requires in this kind of cooperation that both can live their freedom in the art implementation and we perceive the product mutually as a gift.

10)Her philosophy of life? Something I didn't ask that she would like you to know.
Romaine: My philosophy is to continue to live my curiosity for knowledge, learning, discovering and being surprised. It is a continuous never ending process to get to know yourself and to develop.

Hadi: My life philosophy is: Reach more knowledge, to become aware of more ignorance in yourself, this point is a new beginning. Everything is within you and you just have to discover it.


11)Future projects?

Since 2022, numerous joint paintings have been created, with which we participate in international exhibitions. In January 2023, we received the first Donatello International Prize in Florence and are also represented in the Contemporary Celebrity Masters Catalog 2023 and the Modern MUSA Art Catalog 20

We are able to make Exhibitions and performances combined to present a very exclusive and exciting event.


2023 Soloexhibition Mai 6. Mai – 3. June, Galerie Kunstreich, Gerechtigkeitsgasse 76, 3011 Bern,

        Painter Romaine Kuonen/Hadi Mohammadkhani with live Performance

        Hadi MohammadKhani, the Body Magic Group, Residence Mashhad

2023 Art & Performance Atelier Dati with live Performance, Zelglistrasse 35, 8330 Pfäffikon,

2023 Part of contemporary art exhibition "No pain, no gain", which will be organized at "Medina Art Gallery" in the heart of Rome in May 2023. The vernissage will take place on May 5th, 2023, at 6 p.m.

Mauro , co-founder of Galleryone962 team
How was Petra Reissman's painting born?

Petra
Due to my father's profession (interior designer), I was involved with creative processes at an early age. I have renovated and designed old buildings. 10 years ago I discovered painting for myself and 5 years ago made it my profession

Mauro
What can we perceive in your works?

Petra
These paintings tell of light and shadow, departures and unions, but in fact in all of us there is this everyday duality. The paintings have an affirmative, an optimistic, a future-cheering statement, in that life is presented as something beautiful

Mauro
He tells the series of works "FUSION, is there any particular passion in these works?

Petra
The series Fusion is the union of my earlier painting style of the series "Deep Layers" and "Reflections". I began by layering the different materials on top of each other and then remove again until the deep layers are revealed again and thus allow the view into the interior. Consciously I work in the deep layers with gloss, so that when looking inside also creates a reflection

Mauro
When you see an abstract artwork, what immediately strikes you?
Petra
Abstract art fascinates me, it leaves room for imagination and interpretation. Art, especially abstract art does not necessarily strive for reality.

Mauro
What was the moment when you decided to start painting abstract works?
Petra
My path to abstract art was relatively short. After geometric shapes and the representation of various objects, I very quickly realized that the representation of reality is not my interest and henceforth devoted myself to abstract art.

M.
How is your perception of art today compared to your first works?

P.
I wouldn't see it as a difference so much as a development of my art. I have now created a style of painting that has a high recognition value not only among my customers.

M.
Is there a painter who inspires you in a particular way?

P.
There are several, but Pierre Soulages is the one I like the most.
M.
What it means to be a painter today and what advantages the technological era we are experiencing can give ?

P.
Painting means to dive into another world, detached from time and space.
Virtual exhibitions open the possibility to present the art to a wide audience, but my paintings are better appreciated in real exhibitions. Direct contact is also important and inspiring for my clients and me.

M.
Projects for the future?

P.
In November I will be represented by an Italian gallery at the Discovery Art Fair in Frankfurt, and in spring I will be in Milan with my Spanish gallery.

What was the beginning of your artistic life?
How does inspiration arise in your profession and how do you manage to find it?

The beginning of my artistic life began to manifest when I began to believe and feel that it was necessary to express emotions and feelings in a way other than the one that everyone adopts to make themselves understood.

That is to say, make an effort to perceive what we have in front of our eyes and we do not see;  that other way of knowing that there is something more extraordinary that we must discover beyond that "light" created and not by chance and satiate the desire to find some way to reveal itself. It is a path that I came to travel from that moment on when I was a child, when I longed to possess that box of watercolors placed in a showcase and to which I went every day to be ecstatic in his presence, when I managed to buy it after a yearning to collect all the money and have it in my possession, I felt very happy with That gift that I gave myself.
It was then, since I was a child, that I began to love the colors of that box of watercolors... and to create for myself a very personal world apart, without anguish and to free myself from ties.
I get exactly inspired by remembering many times what was described above and remembering the instructions of my former teachers who emphasized maintaining a continuous rhythm of work and observation of what is being done, to be able to meditate on it and maintain the corresponding sensitivity in what is being done. is doing to achieve satisfactory results in the face of the aesthetic approaches that are desired.

What are your favorite artistic currents?

Among the artistic currents that may interest me, there is abstract expressionism and artists such as: Jackson Pollock and his action painting, the floating forms in the surrealist work of Marg Chagall, Paul Klee, the Venezuelan Armando Reverón. I like the work of Antoni Tapies a lot and so on.

Can you tell us about the techniques you use?
Is there a technique or format that you prefer?  

And when do you understand that it is finished?

The techniques that I often use are the juxtaposition of visual textile patterns, often using airbrushing, the use of paint rollers to achieve transparency, all this on any type of support (fabric, cardboard, etc.). The use of the roller sends it to me. instantly to the engraving of which I was a regular executor (because it is constantly used to extend the ink to be used on the plate where the design to be stamped rests, it is also my habit to use collage because this technique allows me to capture a certain shape without much fuss in the desired design.

I resort to the use of color directly from the tube that allows the gestural in the desired transfer

What are the fundamental human messages that underlie your artistic production?


Human messages: PEACE!  Favorite themes: those that refer me to ideas about religion or science, a work according to my experience is never finished due to the fact that when looking at it again for a future development in time I find faults, either in color, shapes etc...

His philosophy of life?

Philosophy of life: live and let live!!!! (Very important... I take care of looking for what is mine, what satisfies me and where I am at ease).

Future projects?

The future project will be defined by the course that the work takes and its demand.
In the message of peace I can add what:.
Love peace and eagerly seek peace;  If you find yourself involved in a conflict, take the initiative to make peace and even if you have tried several times and have not yet been crowned with success, keep trying, sincerely making the effort to achieve peace ennobles you.

live in the present do not allow words spoken or actions carried out in the past prevent you from making peace at this precise moment...


peace !!!!  Yes sir !!!!!

We are happy to present the interview made to Jessica Lavoie by Mauro, curator of Galleryone962

Mauro

How did you come to art?

 Jessica 

 A year and a half ago i bought few pieces and this is right after that that i decided to try painting. I since then discovered a real passion.

Mauro 

 What was the first abstract painting you remember experiencing at the beginning of your artistic career?

Jessica 

 The one I bought for my house prior to start painting. I still have them at home but they have been replaced with mine on the wall.

Mauro 

 Where does your inspiration come from?

Jessica L 

 Im usually always inspired because I don't paint as much as I would like too so when i do its very feeling-oriented.

I go with the flow and try to not think too much during the process

because if i do i become too logical and for me it won't work.

I also learned when to stop – if see that my painting is not really getting anywhere interesting, I don’t push it because I will just end up wasting paints.

Mauro

 Which artists have particularly inspired you?

Jessica 

 Ian Rayer Smith is THE best overall! love everything about his art . Hes very constant and he’s never deceived me!

Mauro

 Tell us about your style, the ideas that allow you to create and your energy transmitted in the canvas.

Jessica L 

 I like to work on many paintings at the time so i can re-use my paints everywhere (where i feel like it would fit).

I never know how long it's going to take me to reach the end of my work, im navigating a lot through it and i like changing it a lot because it takes a while for me to be satisfied like to do a lot of mark makings and have a thick texture with many layers. I love bold and colorful moves, use pens, pastel oils and spray paints.

 I am in a constant evolution I always try different approach and each day bring me closer to where I really want to become as a painter. I don't think I have found my style yet.

Mauro

 Why abstraction?

Jessica 

 That’s the only thing that im drawn into. I don’t like realistic paintings; abstract is my thing!

Mauro 

 How did you live the difficult period of the covid?

Jessica L 

 My family and i adapted along the way and sometimes bad times lead us to good times. We are now full-time working from home and bought a house in the country for the kids so it turned out great for us.

Mauro 

 Projects for the future?

 Jessica L 

 Continue to evolve and explore as much as possible with my art.

 

Mauro
1. How did you come to abstract painting ?

Christine
I think I would tell you how I came to painting at all. This was around 20 years ago, when a nice italian lady read my palms and said I would be an artist. This sounds kind of superstitious and believing in everything…. but since I always admired people who could paint and thought I would not be able to do it - I started.
And the abstract painting was like a necessary development. As I am a very intuitive person and painter, and I have a good view which colors, structures and forms fit together, abstracts are easy for me to paint.

Mauro
2. What is your source of inspiration ?

Christine
In the artists world inspiration could be everything.
For me it’s the color itself: I could see for example a pink and yellow ball and it would inspire me to paint pink and yellow. But of cause, when I need inspiration, I take a walk in the nature which could be forest or beach both. Love and joy will always be inspiration for me. The main point is the light and the lightness. When I am in Andalusia, where I am also living, I love the morning light, or the light on the sea which glimmers, the evening light showing itself on the white Andalusian walls and at least the lightness the sun brings to the people.

Mauro
3. When you see a work of abstract art , it sends you immediately ? The shape , color , or the manner in which it was made ?  

Christine
It is more that I feel abstract works. And first of all I love the colors ( if I love the work ),
they have to match or if not, they must give the painting an interesting exciting aspect.
What I love in abstract art is the colorplay which has to be special and different. Of cause I notice the technique and find it more or less interesting.

Mauro
4. As you have gone through this difficult period Covid , he has influenced you ? And in what manner you believe that he did it in relation to your creations ?  

Christine
This period gave me the chance to retire from my longterm profession as Natural Practitioner and Psychotherapist. And this offered means an artist more space for being creative and starting an artist career .

Mauro
5. What do you think of the digital age , do you feel comfortable ?  

Christine
For sur it has been important and useful in those lockdown situations, but, sincerely, I love to touch things, I love tangible art and I hope that the art market will not need it to be digital.
Mauro
6. Tell us about future projects.

Christine
As I am studying at a Free Artschool I hope to learn and develop more and more. I love to learn sculpture . And I am dreaming of having Solo Exhibitions all over the world. And in fact, I will have one in New York in a Gallery at Lower East Side in May 2025.
 

Born June 15, 1968 in Braunschweig - Germany  1991-1996 studies for a post of higher education 1996-2001 fine arts at the Braunschweig University of Fine Arts 1998 scholarship abroad in Toulouse at the Ecole des Beaux- Arts April 2001 diploma "free art" with Professor Hermann Albert July 2002 Master with Professor Klaus Stümpel cum laude 2002 and 2003.

Reflection -
One of my biggest ideas to get an artist is "Let's color the world" to make the world more colorful and happy.  I think there is enough suffering and injustice, I don't want to provoke.  My wish is that the viewer can refresh and relax at the same time by immersing himself in my paintings.

INTERVIEW

Tell us about the beginning, the first abstract works!

My first abstract paintings were made on bulky waste rolls, I used them to create worlds of colorful brushstrokes, it was a mix of feelings, you can't express them in words.

What are the prevailing colors in your palette?
The clean chromaticism and the well-defined line are striking in his canvases.  What can you tell us about his pictorial technique?

When I started my fine art studies, I was drawing still lifes and everything else to get different techniques,
but I realized that my preference is to create abstract color spaces and landscapes with layers of colors, sometimes with concrete details.  I love all kinds of colours, but in a painting sometimes red or blue or yellow prevails... It depends on the circumstances of the atmosphere I want to evoke in the photo.  With chromaticism and well-defined lines I create a stage, where the spectator can experience his own story, mood or memory.

Are there any techniques or formats that you prefer?

I like playing with different formats, I like square the most, because it's so free and strong.

My influences can be found in romantic painters such as Caspar David Friedrich and Turner as well as Rothko and Miro, Klee or other expressionists.

What is art and what does it mean to be an artist?

Being an artist for me always means looking into the environment to get new impressions, impulses and ideas.  When I walk in nature or in the city

I collect all the reflections of the trees, of the sky, I catch the mood of the people, their faces and the rhythm of the city... As I read, I listen to the words and create new compositions of color fields, everything flows in my paintings....


I am the mother of two children, now grown up, aged 18 and 20, but my paintings are the same as children, I create them and bring them into the world, it feels like motherhood…

What do you think of the digital age we are living in relation to art?

In my opinion, it's another experience to look at the original painting, rather than seeing it digitally, it looks more real and you can see and feel more details... but there are definitely advantages, so you can show more people without having any transport. ..


I'm happy to be an artist and I can do what I like, it's a great gift.  I am very grateful for this freedom.