The Chilean artist opens up about his first steps of his creative life path; from his friend’s art studio to his independent studies. Get to Know Diego Palacios with the Kooness interviews.
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The artist Diego Palacios began working as a painter in 2014. Since then, he has been concentrating towards the theory and practice of painting. Palacios felt a deep connection to his origins, reason why he has continuously dealt with the Chilean art world, where he made his first experiences with painting.
Kooness: What is your ideal working environment?
Diego Palacios: If I can be allowed to dream, I’d say a wooden modern house in Patagonia, overlooking a lake and with a fire stove, as well as an American kitchen with tables and a good music system. I would really love something similar in the French countryside, as well.
However, realistically, the keyword is music. It is fundamental for my creative process to listen to loud music as well as podcasts. I would love a room for with internet access and an ideal temperature. The atmosphere must be calm and spacious rather than chaotic.
K: How do you define success as an artist?
DP: To me, to be a successful artist means to be able to spend the majority of my working-time painting and creating artworks, in order to fulfil all of my basic and non-basic needs. As well, the success as an artist is by all means to have enough artistic freedom to be able to choose most of your subject matters.
K: Describe how art is important to society.
DP: I think our relationship to art as humans is extremely significant, perhaps even more than the one we have with philosophy, being slightly more mysterious and consequently sparking an interest in the watcher. Sometimes I wonder if art is some sort of gateway towards otherwise rather inaccessible types of knowledge. The way art interacts with history is very particular, as well as the way it sometimes serves itself of groups of people to manifest itself, expressing itself as movements. Many smart people have spoken about the importance of art to society, I would humbly suggest it is a way for society to speak to itself, see itself and to access transcendental knowledge.
K: Does art help you in other areas of your life?
DP: Definitely, it keeps me busy, inspired, motivated and sane. It gives you a good excuse to organise gatherings and to photograph your friends. It brings good conversations both when doing instantaneous paintings than when just referring to art. It also inspires my cooking activity.
K: What are your favourite and least favourite parts of professional art?
DP: I guess my favourite part of professional art is the act of painting itself. I enjoy spending hours and hours at the studio, while working. The best moments are when I feel in the so-called ‘state of flow’, in which time seems to fly.
On the other hand, my least favourite part of the profession is the outlet it takes in relationships with people. Often, in the art world personal relationships get affected due to the interest that sparks when exhibitions or artistic purposes are achieved. These situations are sometimes uncomfortable if not taken lightly. My wife is my agent and usually helps me with that part of the job, which is an important one and is very close to the creative one.
K: What motivates you to create?
DP: What motivates me to create comes from an instinctual unclear place inside of me. It can be said it a gut feeling rather than an intellectual thought process. It feels like an urge. It is hard for me to put it into words. Another thing which motivates me to create is the fact I know I’ll spend time on that particular work, and I look forward to that. Creating paintings and artworks feels like something natural for me to do, something inherent that what I am supposed do naturally.
Cover image: Diego Palacios. Monochromekissed, 2020. Courtesy of Montero Art Gallery
Written by: Kooness
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