KUBAPARIS ATELIER Hélène Padoux

KUBAPARIS ATELIER presents artists and their ateliers from all over the globe.This time you will get a glimpse into the world of painter Hélène Padoux.

Age: 30

Education: BFA at Beaux-Arts de Paris, MFA at HFBK Hamburg

Current location: Paris

A work of yours that you particularly like and why?
A painting called Our Blue tranquility because I managed to gather several elements that interest me: a reference to past still life painting, a vaporous atmosphere, a weary face, a “love” graffiti that fades, as if everything was falling into sleep... All in a fairly simple composition, and in a medium format that offers proximity and intimacy with the viewer.

What is your favorite part of your job?
The moment in the creative process when I don’t question myself and the gesture is spontaneous. I then follow my intuition and I know what to do, where to add a touch of such color, where to accentuate a shadow... It is very rewarding, and it makes me think that I am in the right place.

What makes something worth making?
When I feel that I am doing a project because it genuinely makes me happy and not according to external expectations. In those moments, when I go deep into something very personal and I am a little afraid, very interesting things can happen, even if the result is not successful. What I can achieve quickly is also often worth it, because it does not leave me time to doubt and it forces me to accept and stick to limited formal decisions.

From which artist would you like to own a work?
I am thinking of drawings by iconic manga authors like Osamu Tezuka or Riyoko Ikeda, or in another realm, an engraving by Francisco de Goya. I’m not sure I would like to own paintings, although I could imagine having a small painting by Odilon Redon for example. I believe that non-reproducible and formally complex works of art are too precious to be kept at home, and I prefer to contemplate them occasionally so as not to get tired of them.

Which art movement has inspired you the most so far?
Mostly Romanticism, with its emphasis on feelings and wonder—opposed to the rationalism of the Enlightenment and its heritage—and its darker side: the gothic spirit, inspired by ancient references, myths and fairytales.

Website: helenepadoux.com

Instagram: @puppy_mauve

Photography credit: Luca Borsato

Copyright: Luca Borsato

Courtesy: Luca Borsato