PAINTER. MADRID. SPAIN.
I’m An Wei, I’m 30 years old and I was born in Madrid, Spain. For now I’m living in Madrid. When I start to paint, I usually put classical music and at the end of day, techno music. I like cigarettes, Dr Martens shoes and Coca Cola, in that order. My sentence: Pizza is from China.
I start to paint very young, at my parents restaurant. I spent my childhood copying the pictures from journals. Later, I was lucky because Fernando, my neighbor, he introduce to me Mariano, a painter who teach me traditional techniques from spanish masters. He never charged me a euro. I learned about ancient materials, preparations and process.
I understand the painting as windows. This means that for me, painting does not end up in the two-dimensionality of the canvas, but as something that expands in space. As I said before, I had an academic training in painting, but I also painted murals and graffiti in the past. I suppose that also influences the work I do now.
The technique I use is totally mixed, I use acrylic paint, oil paint, sprays, enamels. Everything has an orderly process that works by layers of paint. The secret is to be flexible and to observe the piece during the process. Above all, working constantly and stay connected with your own work.
I always start with a sketch, in fact, I almost always spend more time doing the sketch than the painting. Then I look for reference images, or I make the photos myself and finally, I make a digital collage for the color studio. All the elements are previously studied before starting with the final piece.
My main motivation is to keep working more and better, that’s enough for me. I´d rather have interesting projects than money. The only thing that I have clear is to continue working in what I like.
My studio is a charasteristic place, it’s inside a basement where I don’t have windows (maybe that’s why I always paint them), where I lose track of time and don’t have any distraction from the outside world. It never rains inside.
Let’s say that since it is something that I live day by day I see it in a worldly way, as something everyday. Art for me is basically to share: to share emotions, ideals or even a beer after seeing art.
