Printing and cutting…

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Meeting was given at Passage des Panoramas in the 2nd district of Paris, closed to Grands Boulevards and Galerie la Fayette.
Le Passage des Panoramas is the oldest passage in Paris , it was open in 1800.
The point of this meeting was to celebrate the beauty of Paris, and see how each of us interpret it through a sketching session.
You can find more pictures of the event on this link.

Here are some more illustration from my sketch book.

The place where ideas emerge, but also where I write, draw, listen, watch… this is where I get informed, I learn new things, but also where I create, report, advice, exchange and so on…

A nice and beloved workplace is I think essential to any creative worker. We get to spend so much time working that if you get a sad environment, uncomfortable chair, slow computer, dark room… it makes it really difficult to get on with work and projects.

I love my workspace, it’s made by me and for me so that every morning I want to seat here even though I usually have to go and work at the office…

I also want to show you today the journey of this piece of illustration, and how I love to mix traditional handmade illustration, with the great tools provided by Adobe Photoshop.

I first seat and look at the view I want to draw. Then, I open my sketch book, draw a rough sketch with a pencil. I then, make the final illustration with a black pen, selecting the best lines.

Secondly, I scan my image and open it with Adobe Photoshop. I then clean it and fill it with colours and textures using a wide range of tools. I pay attention to every small details on the image and I believe this will make a better result.

“If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, of what, then, is an empty desk a sign?”
Albert Einstein

On the first day, I took a free alternative tour which I recommend greatly. It shows the alternative places of the city, with a good teaching on street artists and neighborhood’s history. I discovered the local artists, « 6er », « El bocho », « Roa », « 1up » and the « ACAB » (All Clubs Are Bastards) usually written by punk and alternative community as a sign of protest against society.

I had the chance to visit Taschel, the most famous artist squat of Berlin, which was about to close down because of a government decision. Artists had been fighting for years to keep the place running, but unfortunately on June 27th, the squat will be definitely closed. The new buyer will start the construction of modern new flats and a restaurant.

I found Berlin very surprising. It’s a huge city with long distances and when you expect the less, something comes out, a painting, a bar, a garden, a gallery…
It is a good idea to travel by bike to reach different good spots in a short time and get the best out of a day.

I stayed in the Friedrichshain district of Berlin where you can see the East Side Gallery and the Berlin wall, YAAM beach, and enjoy some really cool night places and cafes. I discovered the Honolulu cafe with an amazing setting made of books.

I also liked a lot the popular Kreuzberg district. It is the Turkish area of Berlin, where only small shops are tolerated in opposition to big commercial chains and fast food. There are a lot of nice street art their also. Once upon a time, the 36 boys gang used to rule this area. It is now safe and peaceful.

“Berlin combines the culture of New York, the traffic system of Tokyo, the nature of Seattle, and the historical treasures of, well, Berlin.”

(Hiroshi Motomura, US Law professor, 2004)

Today I found a new website selling amazing photograhy of animals. The site is greatly designed and the prints are fun, clean and creative. I can imagine one of those in my interior perfectly.

You can visit: https://www.theanimalprintshop.com

This post is not advertising, it shows interesting thing I discovered on my researching journey and want to share with you.

For the opening of the new flagship store of Levi’s on the  Champs Elysées, he made a collaboration with French artist Andre. At the main entrance of the store, on the left was a piece of Andre and on the right one of Obey. We could then discover a few objects telling stories about their painting journey, shoes, cans…

Downstairs, was three workshops where you could make your own art on a t-shirt, sticker and pins. The point was to get to know the artistic journey of a street artist.

The queue was too long for me and the real point of my venue was to meet Shepard Fairey. So I did,  he made me an autograph and gave me one of his new sticker. I asked him if he was working on a new piece here in Paris and surprise he gave me the location of his new coming 20 meters tall painting, rue Jeanne d’Arc in the 13th district. I will soon check it out…

Street Art is changing every single week in the district, it’s fantastic. Pieces are painted over every three weeks and the next day, new ones are out already. Some of them are staying all year long…

We can see the  famous Space invader, 36 Recyclab, Miss-Tic or Cyclop for example. Those three last ones are especially known in Paris.

I love to see the different aspects of street art and how it plays with its environement. I will defenitely show you some more soon as this form of art is one of my main ressource of inspiration.

Czech art is also interesting and even surprising, not quiet what you could think of…

You can also find some absinthe in Prague, which is pretty unusual, but it is said that it’s so strong that it can make you crazy. Some famous artists like Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Vincent Van Gogh or Paul Gauguin are known for consuming quantities of absinthe, would this help making good art ?