Koi Painting

This set of paintings is the result of ten years of research with wood blocks. These blocks began to be used by the Egyptian civilization to decorate fabrics, and are still used today in some parts of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nepal, where I found them. Before that, I used daily objects, such as paper towels, to create decoration. I remember the day I first saw the blocks in a small Indian town. It felt like a crush, and from that first trip I brought about thirty of them. Now I have hundreds. When I work with these wood blocks, my intention is not to seek harmony through order and geometry, but just the opposite. The first step of my work is to create a certain order and then destroy it and transform it in a balance that thrives in chaos and disorder. It is not my intention to follow in the footsteps of the artisans. My job is a different one: to use the tools of classic art and transform them into something contemporary. Then, I add these decorations to texts or expressions that I've been finding in my travels, or on the walls of the cities I visit, or in peoples’ conversations. I select those expressions that define the environment in which I find myself, my interaction with the local people, or a specific situation that I have experienced and from which a concept was born. In the last year, I painted spiritual messages, such as SAB KUCH MILEGA ("everything is possible"), and SHANTI SHANTI ("inner peace”, and colloquially, “take it easy”); messages about our relationship with the world, such as WE ARE VISITORS and MEMENTO MORI; messages about our relationship with those who rule over us, such as WAKE UP, and REVOLUTION; and messages that define a people, such as CARALLO! It is not my intention to leave great phrases for posterity. I think in everyday life and in its beauty. I believe that everyone has something to say, that everyone can do anything. My name is Marc Janus. I was born in Vigo (Spain) 41 years ago and moved to Madrid (Spain) when I was 23. I travel each year to a different destination to meet different cultures and peoples, to gain understanding into others’ lives, and practice respect. Every day I try to be a little better to others and myself.