"I leave it up to intuition"

‘Délicatesse des couleurs’, the tenth exhibition in Salzburg’s Hangar-7, presents young artists from France. The Parisian Susanne Jalenques, born in 1976, prefers to copy landscapes whose abstracted form only becomes obvious upon closer inspection.

Firstly, please give us a few details about you: What do you like, what can’t you stand, and what do you laugh about the most?

I love to discover new things and ideas. I also love my friends, of course, dancing, the cinema, Japanese food and painting. Things I can’t stand are bitchy people; and also a lack of elegance. And I love to laugh, preferably with my boyfriend Christian.

Which three artists – also from different genres if you like – touch you?

Velasquez, Jean Echenoz and Martin Scorsese.

What do observers of your art usually notice first …?

The atmosphere, colors and the type of composition.

... and what makes it characteristic in your opinion?

I try to take unusual paths, and always follow my intuition. When I paint I move in a state of organized chaos; my mood at the time greatly influences the outcome.

Please give us some insight into the working environment where most of your works are created. Is it sterile or chaotic; quiet or full of life?

I actually wish I had a neat and tidy workspace where I could get my thoughts together clearly, but unfortunately I’m a passionate collector of paintings, books, drawings and all kinds of paperwork. Since recently I’ve also been sharing my studio with three friends, which means there’s always a bit of chaos, but I’m working on improving this.

Please choose one of your exhibited works and describe in a few words how it developed and what the idea behind it is.

In ‘Matala’ I originally wanted to let my love of the ocean and my memories of a wonderful trip to Crete flow into it. Somehow the landscape came across as being too classic, a bit ‘déjà vu’. I was curious about how the motive would look as a night landscape, so I fooled around a bit and suddenly, without intending it to, the picture got more and more abstract and was then colored in a way that I hadn’t intended in the beginning. And out of what was supposed to be a holiday souvenir became a painting that some find violent.

What would be the ideal feeling or awareness that observers leave the Hangar-7 exhibition with?

That contemporary art is exciting and continually brings about new results.