Artist of the Month June: Julian Wesner
Sometimes it takes a crisis to be able to move on again. And so, it turns out that the first artist I’m introducing once again to the English Post community and readership is someone who knows best what it means to be a stand-up kind of person. Some may not have noticed, but there has not been an Artist of the Month interview for half a year. I had already toyed with the idea of stopping, but then Julian’s message about whether there would be another interview soon brought me back on track.
Date: 24th May 2022
Place: The King’s Arms, Nuremberg
Lydia: Hi Julian, thank you so much for taking the time for this interview just before your graduation.
Julian Wesner: I’m delighted to be interviewed for English Post and to have the chance to talk with you about my art. It’s the first time I’m doing this.
Lydia: And I am really looking forward to learning more about you and your work. Let’s start with the question-and-answer game!
1) Are you a night owl or an early bird?
Totally a night owl. I love the dark and the silence. I’ve often sat alone at Wöhrder See in the evening. I love the waves and the lights in the water at night.
2) Where do you get your inspiration for your art from?
A lot of it is intuition, but for landscape paintings, it’s simply the joy of painting, lots of ideas for my live works come from video games, Instagram, museums and art galleries etc.
3) Do you have any artistic role models?
Bob Ross and Vincent van Gogh.
4) Do you get angry about criticism?
Not at all, I love feedback! It can sometimes be a help as well as an inspiration.
5) What are you proud of?
That despite the many hard years that lie behind me, I have never forgotten art. There were difficulties and a long time when I did not do anything artistic, but I kept coming back to art.
6) Where would you like to be exhibited once in your lifetime?
Phew, never thought about that question. I would spontaneously say Amsterdam because I really like the city.
7) What is your favourite place and your favourite part of town in Nuremberg?
Wöhrder See. I just love water, the way it rushes and shines, it’s so calming. Sometimes in the summer I even stretch my hammock somewhere there and relax under the rustling of the leaves.
8) What is your favourite dish?
Pelmeni, which is basically Russian tortellini with a lot of garlic.
9) What do you always have at home in the fridge?
Butter, because I rarely use it and I’m often not sure if I have enough left when I need it, which is why I often accidentally buy more butter than I need!
10) Who would you definitely not want to sit at a table with?
I really can’t think of an answer to this question. Every encounter can be interesting in its own way!
11) What character traits do you appreciate or value in others?
Openness, honesty, and kindness are particularly important to me.
12) How do you relax?
With a hot tea, music, a few rounds of my favourite video game, and meditation before bed.
13) Where is your next trip going to be?
Finally a metal festival again this summer! And maybe to the Netherlands again. It depends on what my friends and I feel like doing this summer.
14) What dream do you want to fulfil yourself?
To have a small studio of my own. I currently paint in my apartment which is ridiculously small, so I have to work on larger projects externally, such as for The Window (a window display at Andrea Sohler’s gallery Schaufenster in Fürth).
15) Life is too short to …
Become perfect at one thing. It’s better to try more and different things.
Lydia: Thank you for taking the time to meet with me.
Julian Wesner: My pleasure!
Simply put, Julian’s work can be summarised as mainly abstract or surreal landscape painting. Bob Ross strongly influences his style. Just like Ross, he is also quite open to experimenting beyond his palette and style. He uses paint filler as well as aryl paint and graffiti spray cans. Everything from colourful psychedelic images to simple black and white drawings can be found in his artistic work so far. The second formative influence on him was above all influenced by Van Gogh’s Impressionist phase. This is partly due to the biographical parallels that connect him with the self-taught Dutch artist.
Julian gets 80% of his orders through personal recommendations and word of mouth. He always takes time to develop a certain feeling for the character, personality, and preferences of his clientele. To this end, he asks his clients questions, among other things about their hobbies, favourite colours and preferred music genre.
“Some people have a great fire in their soul, but if no one comes along, you have to make things comfortable on your own.”
Julian Wesner
And he has no shortage of ideas either. Sometimes a spontaneous artistic idea must be captured and he will get up at night to draw. He enjoys working when everyone else is sleeping. Some of the works lie around for a long period. It is not unknown for a painting to be finished after a three or four-year break. A significant feature is that all his paintings have no title. Now and then he uses abbreviations that no one but himself understands.
He regularly takes part in live painting events at the Weinerei where he often finds potential buyers. For the rest of 2022, he has many exhibitions and projects in the pipeline. Currently, he is exhibiting in the Window Display at Andrea Sohler’s studio in Fürth and will soon be designing and painting the entire Etyok Vegan Kebab fast food restaurant in Nuremberg.
Additional info about Julian Wesner:
Julian was born on 8th February 1999 in Augsburg and grew up in Bayreuth, where he went to school and took his first artistic steps. Julian Wesner has been painting since primary school and attended an art school in his spare time for many years. There he not only learned various techniques and styles but also developed his own artistic style. With his artistic works being so well received, he and a classmate, Dilara Akbaba had their first larger exhibition in 2018 named Booster at the Kunstverein Bayreuth E.V. Encouraged by his art teacher, friends and acquaintances, after leaving school he applied to the art academy in Nuremberg. Unexpectedly, he received a harsh rejection which represented a turning point in his life. He decided to turn his back on painting for the time and ultimately decided to study architecture. He has since overcome his disappointment and is artistically active in his leisure time.
Julian first exhibited four years ago in the art cabinet of the Kunstverein in the old town hall in Bayreuth called Junge Kunst. He has also shown his artistic works at Live Painting events at the Weinerei in Nuremberg. His second exhibition was in June 2022 at Andrea Sohler’s gallery Schaufenster in Fürth. More exhibitions are soon to follow!
Follow and find out more about Julian Wesner:
Instagram: @julian.wesner
Facebook: @julian.wesner
