Paris
In 2011, I went to Paris on a holiday. I ended up staying for three years. Although I had gone there seeking love, I wound up staying for myself and finding my true spirit as an artist in the process.
I have never had any formal training as an artist. Yet, in Paris I was able to take up an apprenticeship with the greatest French artists of the last few centuries. I spent all my spare time in art galleries, attempting to understand how the artist had applied the paint to the canvas.
When I began to paint this self-portrait, I wasn’t confident in my technique and I tried to show too much in one piece. The bright colours of the background were visually interesting. But they were also a distraction from the figure in the foreground.
When I revisited Paris (2012-2017), I made the colours of the background more muted to allow my self-portrait to stand out. I wanted to focus on how it felt to live in Paris and to capture the excitement and energy of it all in this painting.
Revisited
The original painting showed me wearing a vibrantly coloured shirt. I changed the colour from red to purple but refused to show myself wearing black, as I so often did. This was an intentional snub to the conservative attire favoured by Parisians.
When I reworked Tel Aviv (2008-17), I kept the domino necklace I had made and worn at the time. In much the same way, in Paris (2012-2017) I kept the pearl necklace because it was my favourite accessory during those years.
It is not always easy to revisit a self-portrait but in this case, I am glad I did. The result is a painting that truly represents me as I was and shows my growth as an artist.