ANDERS SCRMN MEISNER
Today we speak to the Danish artist on inspiration and his upcoming show "Apricots and Freshwater Pearls".
I was born in Copenhagen 1981. After high school I went to live in Sevilla, Spain for a year and from there sort of ended up in Amsterdam. I was around 22 at the time and spent most of my time playing in an indie band with some good friends. That's around the time when I really started to draw and paint too. The band became a sort of creative community for us and we started doing art shows. My early 20's in Amsterdam were a lot of fun but there was also a lot of partying. When I met Carolina (my wife) life sort of came together in a more "tranquil" manner and I started to devote much more time to painting, learning and exhibiting my works. We moved back to Copenhagen in 2011 and now we split our time between the city and the countryside.
Tell us about your greatest inspirations or influences please.
For my upcoming show I've mainly been inspired by things close to me. My wife, my kids and our home. Having said that, I have a tendency to get obsessed with new subjects every week. The other day I bought some beautiful french apricots and when I came home I put them next to my wife's pearl earrings. The two things looked so perfect together and the next day I was painting apricot trees and reading about french apricot farmers. Once you realize the fragility of apricot farming it gets interesting to paint them. The world can turn against the apricot. It can be too hot, too cold, too wet which of course leads the thoughts towards climate change and all that it entails. Then there is the actual appearance of the apricot. It's a very beautiful fruit, all orange with reds, yellow and green in there. It makes sense to look at an apricot and see life with all the dangers and beauty it entails.
I really go through a lot of literature while I work. I would prefer to actually read but when I'm home and in bed, kids sleeping, my eyes are too tired from painting to read. I read quite broadly, both fiction and non-fiction. Some writers are better to paint to than others. I find An Proulx an exceptional writer. I also really like Steinbeck and Cormac Mcarthy and Denis Johnson.
The Danish writer Merete Pryds Helle -She is one of my favourite Danish writers and she has a gentle way to show brutality. I find writers to be the best company in the studio.
How are the current trends in technology and innovation affecting your work as a creative?
I have to admit I'm a pretty analogue guy. I will never be on the forefront of technology that's for sure. The problem is that I am not really interested in working on the computer. Having said that, I think it's wonderful to be able to document paintings myself. I also like the fact that you can share your art with the world quite easily online so as a tool, of course I use all the adobe products and website builders - all those things. But I have to say that the days I feel best are either when I've been painting all day or been close to nature and working with my hands. It's increasingly important for me to get away from the internet.
We’d love to hear more about your creative process.
I usually stumble upon something that I find interesting and then I will try to remember it. I sometimes write titles down or do small sketches but I also like just to have the idea floating around in my head for some time. If it sticks around I will try to follow it and if it disappears that's ok too. Once I'm locked into an idea I imagine the painting in my head and then I will lay that onto the canvas the best I can. I will be doing a lot of painting in my head before I step to the canvas, I can be cooking or taking a shower and I'll be painting in my head, changing the colors around, moving the objects on the paintings around, basically planning the composition and all the steps I need to make to get to there. I rarely work on more than one canvas at the time.
What do you think of the art world and how it works in general?
I think it's still pretty old fashioned to be honest. I do think things are changing slowly in terms of diversity and gender balance which is about time but on the business side of things I think it's pretty much the same old model for artists working with gallerists. I'm actually quite happy to work with gallerists and especially with my long relationship with Hans Alf Gallery out of Copenhagen. I think I have been more focused on the actual work and not so much what is actually going on in the art world. I like to read, study and paint and I'm very grateful when someone helps me with the rest of it.
Anything coming up that we should know about?
I have a show coming up that opens on the 12th of August at Hans Alf Gallery in Copenhagen. It's titled "Apricots and Freshwater Pearls". I'm really looking forward to showing all these new paintings. During summer I will do ceramic vases and work on some designs for a yet to be announced collaboration that I'm very excited about. In Autumn we are taking the kids out of school and will relocate to Sevilla for some time. I will start working on a book about patterns while we are there. In December I will show paintings at Tinimini Room in Holland which is a space run by dutch artist Ralf Kokke.
What does wellbeing mean to you and anything in particular that you practice?
I started cycling during these covid years. It has now become a sort of meditation for me. One thing is the exercise of course but there is also something about it that teaches you to breathe properly and keep concentration. When you ride with around 50-60 kilometers downhill you can't really be thinking of much else than the road in front of you. The endurance part of cycling is also very useful I think. In many ways it's a mental game where your body and your brain communicate and have to find an agreement.. Whenever I have problems in the studio - most of those can be biked away.
Portrait courtesy of Carolina Echeverri
