Alice
Savage
Recently
I spoke with Alice Savage, an inspiring artist living in Italy with
her cat Romeo. I asked her about her artistic inspiration, deepest
secrets and how she fills her time.
Here
are her answers..
How
do you describe your working space? What inspiring things do you
surround yourself with?
“I
draw mostly from my studio, that is actually the living room adapted
to my needs! I had to accept the existence of the furniture which was
already there so I have one wall and a window in front of my desk,
another desk for my pc and one for my drawings.
The
wall features my little art collection and a lot of foxes, flowers
and birds pictures for inspiration.
The
desk is often in a state of .. creative chaos”
I
indulge my creative side with French literature and old English
poetry; what is your reading inspiration and do you find it helps you
create artistically?
“I
have been a bookworm since I first learnt to read! I have an intense
relationship with the works of Amais Nin, Sylvia Plath and Anne
Sexton, I also share the love of these French authors (Baudelaire)
with you – I love poetry in general.
I
like to be a sponge and find inspiration in many different places.
Reading books, listening to music (I pay a lot of attention to
lyrics) . I also like to find quotes on the internet – it will
sound silly but I find a lot of new authors that way!
How do you cope with a lack of inspiration?
“I
love to watch details. There is a whole new world in the details.
I
rarely am “not inspired”, my art is my journal and I often just
draw what comes natural. I love to take photos of the nature around
my house and get lost in the macros.
I'd
say life and emotions inspire me but not on a 'sentimental' level. I
draw and doodle every day and I just keep that window open and look
at all the things that fly in.”
Some
of your drawings can be quite moving, how do you dig out the darker
side of your subject?
“Coming
from ten years of depression and panic attacks, it never took me much
effort to find the dark side. I was in such darkness, for a while, I
couldn't bare to create; I couldn't face the despair that filled me.
The soul surgery that always happens with creation.
Living
in that condition forced me to change, it's hard to explain but
somewhat like what I said before about the details; if you're ready
to be honest, naked and raw with your art then you start to notice
things, little things, most people don't. It's something I see in the
art that touches me.
I
started to draw again when I realised it was my last chance to
survive and stay relatively sane; it saved me.
When
you're not busy creating, what do you do to fill your time?
I
draw! Ever since the happy age of three – I just always loved to
draw.
Drawing
teaches me new things everyday, it is the best meditation for me.
I
love.. cats, foxes and bears. I love fountain pens and rings. I love
to have nail polish on (how fancy!).
When
not working, or drawing, I spend my days knitting and tatting lace,
they both calm me. I like to read, even though I don't have much
time, and I like to sleep and play with my kitty Romeo, who likes to
purr-purr on his human!”
