A: Your paintings are very detailed, expressive and figurative, but rich in symbols. Would you share with us your creative process?
LA: I wish to talk about nothing other than the living, the being. We all know that the being is beyond appearances. We all have experienced this intimately. Today I don’t have the maturity that would allow me to reveal the nature of things. So I use the symbol. The symbol is unfortunately restrictive since it’s cultural and implies an education or experimentation. It's like the story of the old man that Carl Jung talked about. Recluse in a cave, he was busy looking for what he doesn’t know. In his quest for truth, after exhausting the concepts, he finds himself reduced to the action. He then takes a piece of chalk to draw what may look like the unthinkable and draws a circle and says "This is it." Then he draws a square inside and said: "It’s better this way." With his reputation as a magician, young people come to him, wishing to learn from him. Seeing the marks on the wall, they try to reproduce and to understand the process. However, by doing so, they flip operations that led to its emergence. No understanding follows. Jung said that this is how things were and continue to be today.
As for myths, they contain our history; they are our cultural heritage. I am a European, and I speak with this heritage.
A: What is your biggest challenge or accomplishment as an artist?
LA: The most difficult thing to do and that I am proud of, is having the courage to postpone my art production when necessary.
I could certainly speak of Goldmund, a large oil painting of 14 meters long by 2.30 meters high, but it would be a mistake. I did it because I had to but it doesn’t exist more than any other small paintings.
What is needed is always strive to remain the fairest in what we do, and it’s not always right for me to paint. Stopping my production was a right act; it wasn’t a non-act or resignation. It allowed me to look elsewhere what was missing in my painting.
Today I can paint again because I have new abilities. My vision grew and my fears fled. The realization of a tableau can be considered again.
In addition to painting, Loïc Arnaud also involves himself in the curation and has actively contributed to Artchipel's content as guest Curator. His personal work was featured on Artchipel over three years ago and can be found with updated posts on his Facebook and on Tumblr.
