Marie-Alice Harel

We discover the early influences that inspired the artist

Where did you grow up and how has this inf luenced your art?

I grew up in a village near Toulouse, in the south of France. I had absolutely no plans and no conscious wish to focus on a creative career pretty much until I turned 30 in 2016, so it’s somehow hard for me to look at my childhood with that perspective.

My work is fuelled by stories, imagination and escapism, as well as, I hope, a sense of peace and compassion. Spending time alone as a child, outside in the garden or in the countryside at my grandparents’ farm, as well as having the privilege to travel thanks to my parents, must have all seeped into my work.

It probably didn’t hurt either that France has such a rich and thriving culture. The first book I remember buying with my pocket money was a small catalogue of the Orsay Museum in Paris. That’s how I discovered the incredible paintings of the impressionists, and maybe my favourite museum collection in the world. I had a print of Van Gogh’s Wheat Field with Cypresses on my wall as a teenager.

What, outside of art, has most inf luenced your artwork?

Nature and animals are a constant source of inspiration and grounding for me. Travelling never ceases to inspire: new sights, different ways to see the world, a diversity of human experiences, stories and histories, each with their own visual language regarding colours, art, clothes, architecture and landscapes. My personal projects, books and stories often start with a place or culture that I’m curious to explore.