Frequently Asked Questions...

You will find below a series of frequently-asked questions,
related to my work as a Painter.

Please feel free to send
yours, by writing to me an email.

No. However, if you would like to leave your contact details (see contact form), I will be very pleased to send you an invitation as and when I take part in public exhibitions, be it at a gallery or at a professional event.

With warm thanks in advance for your interest in my work !

With the exception of those belonging to my private collection, all of my paintings are for sale to private customers or public organisations, and/or available for hire by companies or public bodies. The online facility to buy or hire my paintings will soon be available on this website, thank you for your patience.

In the meantime, if you are interested in buying or hiring one of my paintings, please contact me via email (eliora@e-bousquet.com) or mail addressed to E.Bousquet, BP 30096, PARIS CX 19 - FRANCE. Please specify the reference and/or title of the painting you are interested in, and your full contact details. I will contact you to confirm the availability of the painting, price and other delivery details. Thank you in advance for your interest !

I am conscious that by doing so, I may spoil the magic of the paintings. However, given that I have often been asked this very same question, I will guide you through the study of two of my paintings : "Born again :The Secret of the Almond Tree", and "Euridice's Destiny". You can also find help to unlock the secret messages of "Flight of Lyricism", "Far Skylines" and "The Birth of Pegasus" in the "Paintings" section of the website…

The clue to the hidden message of my other paintings is to be found in their title – and the English translation of the original French titles is sometimes more self-explanatory – and in the music and songs which have inspired them, together with the symbolic use of shapes and colours… Over to you, good luck !

"Born Again : The Secret of The Almond Tree"

In the Jewish tradition, the almond tree, being the first to blossom in the spring, is a symbol of new life. In medieval esotericism, an almond-shaped halo can be found adorning the Virgin Mary's head in most paintings of that time, and is a symbolic representation of her virginity. More generally, the almond is frequently used symbolically to represent the hidden origin of things…(*) With this painting, I wanted to depict my conception of the Nativity, and what I see as its mysterious, sacred but also inspiring character. Thus I painted my celestial Virgin naked, embracing Light under the watchful gaze of an ox and a donkey, and preparing to give birth to the great Spirit of the world… While they do echo traditional representations of the Nativity -  i.e baby Jesus lying in a manger - the presence of the ox and the donkey is also symbolic : the ox represents detachment, gentleness and contemplation while the donkey, shown here in the forefront and in white, represents knowledge. Now over to you, good luck in finding the clue to the « secret of the Almond Tree »...

(*) Source : Dictionnaire des symboles - Jean Chevalier & Alain Gheerbrant - Editions Robert Laffont (1982)

 "Euridice's Destiny"

This painting (click it to enlarge it) refers to Orpheus's doomed love for Euridice. In Greek mythology, Orpheus was the blessed musician who had the power to appease the wrath of nature. Because of his unique gift, he obtained from the gods of the Hades that they would release his wife, Euridice, killed by a serpent while fleeing the advances of another man, Aristeus. However, the gods had laid one condition to her release : that Orpheus should not look at her until she had emerged into the daytime light. Sadly Orpheus, seized by doubt, turned round to look at his beloved before they had come back to the living world - and Eurydice was lost to him forever... (*) In this painting, I wanted to show that our lives often hang in the balance, and to stress the permanent need for us to chose between Good and Evil.

I therefore placed the black serpent of Death in the centre of the painting, as he was at the core of "Euridice's destiny". The serpent was created using pure acrylic paint, in many superimposed layers. I wanted to represent thus his evil power. I then added two thin layers of paint, to make him as imperceptible as possible and to give him a cunning dimension. The serpent, who is the indirect cause of Euridice's death, is shown on the painting sitting at the crossroads of two worlds, two possible outcomes represented by layers of colour either side of the reptile's sinuous body. One of the many messages hidden in this painting is that, like Orpheus, we are constantly faced with making a choice between Good and Evil, symbolised on the one hand by the rising blue and white light, and on the other by black and green abysses, a symbol of Death. This is what is commonly known as "free Will", a unique human faculty. Our destiny can suddenly take a turn, with the slightest slip of the will, the slightest promise not kept, the slightest doubt… Free Will is supposedly a unique gift to the human kind, a kind of permission to act against the laws of nature or divine commendments (symbolised here by the condition given by the gods to Orpheus) ; and yet, is this supposed power not entrusted to us only a trap, which brings us back to the day of the Original Sin, and expulsion from the Garden of Eden ? (*) Source : Dictionnaire des symboles - Jean Chevalier & Alain Gheerbrant - Editions Robert Laffont (1982)

I chose deliberately not to date my paintings, so as not to fix them in time, as I am attracted to that that is timeless. Also, I like looking at older collections again, and complement them, as if the word «ending » didn't exist. But to answer your question in a pragmatic way, here is the rough chronology of my 12 collections :

• Before 2004 :
  The collection "May Flowers"  (figurative art featuring flowers and landscapes), and "Aquarine" a collection of watercolours representing seascapes and birds + the collection "Muses' Realm" (portraits of women) and "The Seal of Time" (symbolical art).
   
• 2004-2008 :
  The collections "Kaleidoscope" (abstract art), "A Men's world" (abstract art) and "Hommage" (pop art).

      Collections still in progress :

• Since 2007 :
  "Celestial Visions", a collection of "cosmic" and abstract paintings.

• Since 2009 :
  " Chromatic Fantasiae" (lyrical abstract art), "Evanescence" (abstract art), "Celestial Visions : 2.0", "Noosphere" and "True Illusions", three collections of digital artworks.

NB : Not all of my works listed above (particulary those in watercolour or crayon) are currently available on this website. They might be added here in the near future. Please visit again soon…