Lucy Besson - Multidisciplinary Artist
Life will test you until you become an artist. But if you do become one, then your whole life turns into a life-long project. Then your every movement, every thought, every action and every picture of yours becomes a piece of Your Personal Myth.
My roots are in Siberia, a “white and green continent” with endless tundra and taiga. A land of nomads and shamans, of megaliths in the form of phallic and egg-shaped menhirs, of graffiti-strewn rocks and sacred mountains.
I am proud of my origins, but I do not want to be limited by my background.
My curiosity about life in the West and my interest in European art and culture brought me to the Netherlands. A new phase in my life began. I was ready to make new discoveries and to discover who I really am, what I stand for and how I look at the world as an artist.
The camcorder and photo camera became my universal means of communication. I started portraying people and making short documentaries. I also drew nude models and painted landscapes. I worked in different genres and used different media, becoming a multidisciplinary artist. The main subject of my work was human beings. I studied inner nature and outer form. In 2007, my autobiographical documentary “Create Your Personal Myth” won the second prize at the “Golden Drum” film festival in Russia. In 2011, I wrote the book “Searching for the Soul,” in which I shared my experiences about painting commissioned portraits.
The pandemic drastically changed my artistic life. Communication with colleagues and clients almost stopped and I had to look for new ways to continue my artistic work. One day, while sitting in my studio, I watched the movement of the sun’s rays through the blinds on the wall, the floor and the objects on the table. This inspired me to create a new series of photographic still lifes, where the sun was my co-author and I had to track its movements. With the arrival of spring, I began working in my garden, digging and removing weeds and roots. All this was captured with my photo and video camera, transforming my finds in the garden into mystical scenes from the underground life of plants. This took me back to my roots, to the nature of my ancestors.
My recent digital works consist of multiple layers of different painting techniques, mixed with photography and digital editing. Content strives to synthesize stories from contemporary life on earth and mythical lore. This is my attempt to connect time and space and create a new universe.