Atelier Insights #8: Alice Máselníková

A.M: My studio space is located on the ground floor of my house in the Swedish countryside. It is about 60m2 divided into two studio rooms and a workshop I use for woodworking. The house was built in 1939 as a tailor’s shop, and all three rooms have large shop windows facing a small river. There is fantastic light during the day and an eerie Twin Peaks atmosphere later in the evening. It can be very distracting to watch the water slowly flow by, the ducks and geese quacking past, or the occasional passerby.

A.M: Working in oil paint, watercolour and charcoal/pastel has been a constant in my practice. I love the dreamy translucency they share, the slight impermanence that allows me to play with light and work in thin layers. Recently I have started to combine them and work on surfaces such as linen and hand carved wood panels. I bought these huge wooden pillars which will become a large painting installation. I am more and more interested in mythology and symbolism, mostly in relation to nature - trees, animals, flowers - gods and beliefs and the spiritual connection between them. I am also learning more about traditional fresco and silverpoint.

A.M: Moving into the countryside and acquiring a large studio after working for years in my small kitchen in the city has affected my art, and my mind, immensely. The transition brought me a lightness of thought, focus and calmness. It’s not just the physical space, but a whole new perspective on life…who knew that digging out potatoes or endlessly fighting off the slugs in the garden would be such a creative inspiration!