Cécile Ganne
I am a French contemporary landscape artist based in Boston, Massachusetts. I grew up painting with my maternal grandmother in the Dordogne Valley of Southern France, but it was not until I was diagnosed with cancer that I returned to my brushes with renewed vigor. No longer merely a skill to be honed, painting became a way to breathe through my long convalescence. This newfound sense of mortality created an extreme urgency in my work: the catalyst to explore, learn, and to create daily with childlike curiosity.
My ephemeral landscapes straddle the line of genre, incorporating and blending various influences, including poetic realism, expressionism, and abstraction. They usher the viewer into the intensity and imminence of the present moment, outside of time and space: the “eternal present”, encompassing the moment of artistic creation while honoring the fleetingness of nature and life. Heavily inspired by Southern France, these vistas are enigmas to be solved and games to delight the mind: an invitation to join me in this quest for serenity that can exist alongside sensuous intensity.
My work is currently represented by Three Stones Gallery in West Concord, and resides in private collections in the United States, France, and the United Kingdom. I also enjoy collaborating with artists who exhibit the same playful approach to their creative process. I often paint during the dreamlike, “in-between” moments of the day: moments of waiting. Otherwise, I am likely to be teaching French at Wellesley College, where I am a Senior Lecturer, cooking, or playing tennis with family and friends.
