beinArt Interview with Peter Gric

Jon Beinart – "What inspires you creatively Peter?"

Peter Gric – "My ideas come from two quite oppositional directions: On the one side I gravitate to the beauty and power of erosional forces. Whenever I walk through a landscape, preferably in the Alps, I try to imagine how the valleys and peaks are formed in fast motion. I imagine the movement of the landscape over a period of millions of years. The same is when I watch satellite images -  I can spend hours playing around with Google Earth.

On the other side I'm fascinated by the exploration of abstract computer-based 3D-geometries. The challenge for me is to play with complex rooms and perspectives in order to create non-accessible places in a completely artificial arrangement of space and light. Through the conversion in painting I attempt to enter these "artificial spaces", to fumble and touch them from inside. I'm trying to give them matter and substance, pulling them from virtuality to substantiality."

Jon Beinart – "Do you often use a computer as a part of your creative process?"

Peter Gric – "Yes. In 95 % of my paintings since 1992 the computer was somehow involved. Before I start a new painting, I always try out the composition with an image editing program. I rarely make classical studies and sketches on paper. If it's going to be an architectural or geometrical composition, I directly start to build the whole thing in a 3D-software. Even if the painting is already in progress, I often take a photo of it to probe changes and variations in Photoshop. I think without the computer my paintings would look quite different today."

Jon Beinart – "That is fascinating Peter. Are people often surprised when they learn that you use a computer to map out your compositions? Have any art traditionalists referred to this part of your process as a short cut (or been bold enough to say that you are cheating)? I personally believe an artist should use all tools at hand if it helps manifest their artistic vision."

Peter Gric – "Once a young artist came along to see my paintings (and me) in original. He was overwhelmed by the complex perspective and illumination of my "Metropolis" painting. He told me, I must be a genius to paint something like this. After I showed him my computer-edited drafts, he was really assuaged!Using this technology is more than just a short cut. It opens new perspectives and new dimensions to every art creation. If this is cheating, then using a telephone is cheating as well. However, I'm definitely not an "old-master-technique-guru"."

Jon Beinart – "Who are your artistic heroes and why? Which artistic movements have you been particularly influenced by?"

Peter Gric – "I can't deny that my origin is located somewhere in the fantastic/visionary/surreal area, but before I seriously started to paint, I was very attracted to S-F illustrations of Chris Moore and Peter Elson and, of course, the Star Wars movies. My first artistic heroes however became Jaroslav Gric (my father), Dali, Max Ernst, Giorgio de Chirico, Rudolf Hausner, Ernst Fuchs, HR Giger, Samuel Bak, Alfred Kubin, and later also Zdislaw Beksinski, Odd Nerdrum, De Es and some others. Especially De Es I find recently more and more interesting. His work of the last three decades shows that he didn't remain in the orbit of the Surrealists. He's exploring the nature of matter, light and consciousness. He is a space traveler who is transcending other dimensions."

Jon Beinart – "You mentioned some greats there. Definitely a few of my personal favorites. What are your thoughts on the contemporary art world Peter? Do you think art critics & galleries have started to accept Surreal, Fantastic & Visionary Art as a serious art movement?"

Peter Gric – "Considering what I see in galleries, art fairs and medias here in Austria and Germany, it seems to me that the established contemporary art world is mainly represented by complete dilettantes. And there is no escape – you will barely find a gallery showing really interesting stuff. Whether it's abstract art, figurative art, photography or object art – it's dull, mindless, inane… in short, it's boring. Everything here is synchronized, and if you don't follow the dictates of the art fashion, you get black listed, effectively losing any chance to exhibit. It's definitely not a free art market, it's a cross-linked cartel of some galleries, curators and art critics. It's something like a permanent insider stock-trading. The Surreal, Fantastic & Visionary Art movement is in the German-speaking Europe officially not existent."

Jon Beinart – "Apart from art. What is important to you?"

Peter Gric – "The most important thing to me is the well being of my wife and my two children. Furthermore I'm in search of calmness, balance, wisdom, … enlightenment. This is really difficult :-)"

Jon Beinart – "How much of your time is devoted to painting? Does each image take a long time to complete?"

Peter Gric – "It's variable. It depends on the size, the complexity, the technique and also on my motivation. Some paintings take only a few days to complete, some are in progress for weeks or months. Sometimes I even can't finish a painting over years, especially large and complex images I rarely can render at once. Therefore I mostly have several paintings in progress."

Jon Beinart – "You mentioned enlightenment earlier. Are you a very spiritual person? And if so, does this play an important roll in your art?"

Peter Gric – "Well, I mentioned I'm in search of enlightenment. Does this already make me a spiritual person per se? I'm still a man full of fears and doubts. I just realized that I will never be able to improve anything in this world except my own horizon, my own awareness. If you see my art from this point of view, you will recognize that I'm still far away from what we call enlightenment."

Jon Beinart – "Do you use art as a spiritual practice? Something that may bring you closer to enlightenment?"

Peter Gric – "I think art creation is a reflection or self-reflection, a playfulness, an obsession. Your art just shows where you are, but it can't bless you with higher awareness."

Jon Beinart – "Ok Peter, I'll move on now to a few questions that have been on my mind since our chat the other night on skype. How do you eat so many chocolate bars and stay so thin? and what's it like on Mars?"

Peter Gric – "I have always been a skinny guy and I never have been eating much. It's true, sometimes when I find a chocolate in the kitchen, I eat it, but my favorite dish is a watermelon.
Mars and the other planets are definitely destinations I'd like to visit. But I wouldn't like to get shaken in one of those crappy medieval rocket-propulsion-stovepipes. A free-energy/overlight-speed flying saucer would be fine!"

Jon Beinart – "Mars is a destination you would like to visit!! Are you telling me that those photo's you sent me the other night were faked? You haven't actually been to mars!

Peter Gric – "Well, I like to play around with Photoshop."

Jon Beinart – "Ah. You’re a trickster ;) Thank you so much for your time Peter. I really enjoyed getting a glimpse inside that strange mind of yours. Do you have any exciting news for our readers? Upcoming exhibitions, publications or sit-coms in the making?"

Peter Gric – "So far no exciting news. I just finished the "Metropolis Triptychon" – it's a commissioned work – so I'll continue with my Artificial-Spaces series.
However, the funny stuff like baby-sitcoms have the highest priority! :-)"

Jon, it was a pleasure to me to satisfy your curiosity. On this place I also want to thank you for your great work with "Metamorphosis" and your indefatigable activities on beinart.org!

Peter Gric's Gallery.