How does abstract art tell a story? It’s…abstract.
Here’s the truth: The painting holds the story. You tell the story.
All my paintings start with these four things: a color, a feeling, a place, and a season.
In the process of making the painting, the story reveals itself.
When I’m creating an original series, I find it in the natural play of getting up close with nature and watching the environment change around me. There’s always an echo in my own life.
The winding down of autumn and the inner resistance to letting go when things fade—be it the colors of the trees, the year’s final butterflies, or the conditions of our own lives. The arrival of spring filled with bright colors and possibility echoes the joyous hope and fear of welcoming new changes.
When I work with a client, we find that story together.
For example, collaborating with the owners of Le Petit Léon to create a series for the 2024 season, we started with the colors of the Vézère Valley and its gastronomic heroes: walnuts, truffle mushrooms, and red wine. From there, we explored the values underlying their work. Respect for nature’s seasons, care for the history and people here, and a drive to contribute in a new and artful way. I created paintings inspired by the colors of the river flooding in midwinter, inspired by how water nurtures the land, its people, and its culture, and has for countless generations in this historic valley. You can read the full story of our collaboration here.
Whether you watch the story unfold in reels of me painting around the countryside on Instagram and read about it here when I create original paintings or you work with me directly to create something one-of-a-kind for you, the key is that abstract art isn’t just something beautiful to hang on your wall—though it’s that too—it’s an experience.
The painting itself is a portal to that experience that you can step through any time just by looking at it. Whenever you need inspiration or want to share your inspiration, you know where to turn. A painting expresses the journey of its creation with as much vibrancy as the day it was created.
All the elements are there, and the story is yours to tell.
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Jacqui Wou
June 25, 2024
The Petit Leon Series is beautiful. It is nice to see how it evolved and the story behind it. It was so special to see it in person with the artist!