Thursday, May 1, 2008

Cold and warm in Paris.

It is fascinating to observe how things start to move.
When it is the moment for a process to speed up and go somewhere.

In Paris in the art world a lot of people are dancing around the fire.
But when is one really coming close enough to get warm?

It depends of two things.

One is that access must be obtained to persons that are in key positions of decision-making.
This is a very difficult thing to do.

Second, once having access to key people, the work presented must be of the highest quality.

This is an ongoing procedure every time.
At one point, the contacts with the key people may have been established and functioning.
But still every time work must be shown that is new, surprising and convincing.

This is a great situation because it motivates.
It makes the artist think to do more and better.

These thoughts come to mind after a day of appointments in the Paris art-scene.
After meeting people known for years to show them recent work.

How satisfying that immediately one new image from the PS-series was sold.
The setting moon.

The images from the PS-series are priced now at 3.000 € (4.700 $).
Signed and in an edition of 5.

Dinner was with the French documentary filmmaker Bernard Martino.
The first meeting with him was in 1968.
It is a long time friendship and although meetings are not frequent, each time it is an incredible merging of opinions and sharing of extraordinary experiences.

Both, we are observers and definitely not participants in the party called life.
At least, we participate as observers.
We know very well why this is.
Life had a rough start and made the innocents defensive.
Participating fully was dangerous and could lead to damage, pain and misery.
This defensive method of choosing to be an observer rather than a participant was sublimated later in life.
Bernard Martino has been making some incredible TV documentaries.
But they were in fact ways for self-therapy.
To discover things about life that cannot be known when being a participant.
Things that only can be known by participating.
Or by making a film or a photo project.

This is why the two friends look each other in the eyes after 40 years of knowing each other and say, yes, we can be proud of ourselves.
We managed to keep our centre and had it not affected by all the bullshit that the adults were throwing on us when we were children.
And from this centre inside ourselves we managed to turn the negativity dumped on us into positivism for millions of people to share.

It is cold and rainy in Paris.
But the time with the friends is heart-warming.


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The images of the PS-series can only be purchased through Galerie Baudoin Lebon in Paris, France.
Check:
www.baudoin-lebon.com






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