Cecilia Garrec is an Art of Austin artist! Get to know more about her and her work!
Cecilia Garrec
AoA – How long have you been in Austin and how did you find your way here?
Cecilia – I’ve been in Austin for 2.5 years. I’m on sabbatical from my research lab in France. With my son wanting to try out an American High School and my mother and brother living in Austin, the choice was clear…I was only expected to be here one year…which then turned into 2 and now I’m coming up on my 3rd year.
AoA – When did you realize that you were an artist?
Cecilia – I started painting 18 months ago. However, I think I started to think that maybe I was an artist when got a piece into a juried show at a gallery AND I sold my first painting at Cherry Cola Dog Gallery…that was about 10 months ago.
AoA – Can you speak to your art training?
Cecilia – I’m completely self-taught as I basically just started dabbling in paint while here in Austin. It all started with a cheap brush and a $5 set of watercolors. However, as I start to delve into this beautifully complex world of art, I find myself looking to get more formal training.
AoA – Where do you derive inspiration from?
Cecilia – Parrish, Vermeer, Bierstadt, Remington, Moran – these are all painters that paint in lush generous colors that serve to tell a story, usually of a more beautiful reality than is sought after and not necessarily attainable…
AoA – Can you tell us a little bit about your work?
Cecilia – My current work seeks to walk on the edge of light, a place where Art is a transformational, energetic and direct force for good. Where the explosion of color and blending beckons the viewer to explore, hope, dream and delve into their own higher levels of consciousness. I want my abstract works to invite the viewer to reflect upon their thoughts and emotions in the hopes of facilitating a positive and uplifting state.
AoA – Can you talk a little about your creative processes in creating?
Cecilia – Although I can be very careful, methodical and detailed, such as when I do botanical pieces, I currently prefer sketching out a piece rather loosely but with the correct proportions and then using my intuition for the color choices and any use of texture. Given that I don’t have all the tools yet that an artist could want…like an easel, most evenings I’m on the floor with my canvas propped up against a wall!
AoA – If you could own one piece from a living artist, who would it be?
Cecilia – Armando Alemdar! He is both an artist and cofounder of Neomodernism, an artistic movement that places particular importance upon the aesthetic and spiritual attributes of painting. Neomodernism aims to create a new link between art of the 15th and 20th centuries and transcend the media ‘hype’ which now surrounds old master paintings.
AoA – What else do you enjoy besides making art?
Cecilia – Playing electric guitar and lifting weights!
AoA – Where can we find your work? Do you have any shows planned for the future?
Cecilia – I have a solo show May 12th “Meet the Artist Series” at Uptown Realty in which I’ll be showing 25 pieces from my collection as well as numerous original pieces that are on loose paper. I also have my work in various restaurants, concert halls, and hotels around Austin
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