A Moment with Elke Foltz
Elke Foltz is a Berlin-based abstract artist exploring the elements of design in colorful chaos using ink, oils, pigments, pastels and collage.
Hi Elke! Tell us a little about yourself— How did you begin to find your own path and style?
I found my own path and style step by step. As a child, I always loved to draw and at 15, I went to boarding school to study in a school of applied art. I was surrounded by creative people, it was a great experience as a teenager. After graduating in graphic design, I decided to first work as an illustrator. It’s actually in Berlin that I started to expand my work towards abstraction, and I found a great freedom of creation in this process. In my painting, I start with the impulse of a search for balance within a constant chaos, where all the elements aim to be in harmony and in perpetual renewal in spite of the prevailing disorder. My paintings are composed in a way that each single element can’t work without the others. My work is also about my own growth and to learn how to embrace mistakes. The incorporation of collage brings into my creative process a deeper purpose focused on composition and reflection.
How would you describe the current creative scene in Berlin? How do you see it evolving and changing?
The current creative scene in Berlin is definitely full of talented creatives. The rhythm of the city can feel slow sometimes but also moving fast at the same time. I think it is because of the gentrification of the city, and Berlin is really wide. There is a strong art scene in Berlin, but the city can also be a bit tough for foreign artists at the beginning. It’s definitely possible to make it in Berlin, but it’s important as an artist to not limit yourself to one place and to be well surrounded. From my experience, I arrived in 2015, I was 25 years old and I wanted to assume myself fully as an artist and Berlin somehow allowed me to realize that.
What is something that most people don’t know about you?
Most people don’t know that I participated once in a lesson of MMA without knowing what MMA actually was. I stayed 2 hours, I was kinda proud of myself. But the result was that I couldn't move my body for a week after this lesson. Haha! The fact that I didn't know what MMA was, proves that I'm not really a sporty person.
And more seriously, I also have a diabetes type I, since I’m 7, most of people don't know that, I don’t talk so much about it because I don’t especially feel the need of it but I think it always good to not feel alone when you live in with an autoimmune disease. It also has an impact on my way of perceiving life.
What are some of your favorite past creative projects you have worked on so far?
I had the chance to work on many different exciting projects so far. I made a collaboration with Puma, where I had to curate the window and create a visual for the window in one of their shops in Berlin. It was for the “World Day of Cultural Diversity ''. We had the opportunity to talk about our vision of the creative industry and how much inclusivity and diversity matters with other great creatives. I also illustrated the book cover of the talented Senegalese writer, Mariama Bâ for her book “Un chant écarlate” published by Les Prouesses edition. The project was really important for me because it happened when I started to connect more with my Senegalese roots through art and literature. I’m Senegalese from my mum and I do remember to ask her for some recommendations a few weeks before the publisher contacted me and she told me that Mariama Bâ was one of her favorite writers and I should have a look at it. So I'm very proud of this project as well.
What are you working on right now? What’s coming next?
Hopefully a solo show and more collaborations! I’ll also start a new series of canvases that will be focused on human relationships, moments of tenderness and the complexity of them. It will be mainly color block work, it’s a new challenge because I love to work with a large panel of colors, but no risk, no fun! I also think we need a lot of love for bearing the violence of the non-sense of how the world is ruled.
What inspires you to keep moving and creating?
Everything keeps me moving and creating, first because I’m a woman with Senegalese and German roots who grew up in France. I’m from this generation that still have to build a more diverse and inclusive art scene. Creation is also a very personal commitment. I speak about different subjects through my art, such as connection, spirituality, the place of the mistakes but also I know that my work can have a positive impact on people and this is really rewarding. My paintings are composed in a way that it’s an organized disorder but all elements are connected. My art offers one perspective of my vision of the world, art can offer so many different perspectives and interpretations of life.
