Surrealism Today: Recurring themes in your work seems to be skeletons and time. How do you think about them?
Andy Schmitz: In fact “skeletons” and “time” are some themes in my work. I think to become aware that everything will pass away and that all life is evanescence makes every little moment more valuable. This feeling should be transported in some artworks.
ST: Your work includes the use of pattern, repetition and refer to religious mandalas. Have these informed your work at all consciously?
AS: I am not a religious person. But of course I deeply believe that there is something beyond. Despite of that, some religious themes found there way into my artwork in my early drawings, such as: http://www.surreal-art.net/12 This was made in the time when I quit with the church … maybe it was my way to process this situation.
ST: What emotions do you feel when you work?
AS: When I draw a picture, in the beginning there is almost no emotion, it is more like a meditation which requires an “emptiness of the mind”, free from thoughts. Mostly I start in this mood and see what kind of drawing develops on the white paper.
When the theme comes into shape, the emotions and thoughts start to become part of the process and form the idea of the artwork to its finalisation. Quite hard to explain … I hope you can understand me.
ST: What emotions do you want your viewers to feel?
AS: The emotions of the viewers are almost impossible to predict. I hope that I can lead them into another world. A world of Imagination where they can just be curious like a child and leave everything behind which is rational.
Hopefully they reach this point just for one second while regarding a picture.
ST: How does architecture inform your work?
AS: In fact architecture itself has not found the way into my surreal pictures.
I plan to start a different episode of my work in future using different media.
Maybe I will do some architecture stuff, too. We will see.
ST: What concepts interest you?
AS: I like everything surreal and fantastic in art. Everything that emerges in the artists imagination and which can not be seen in real life. This for me is the most impressive kind of art.
