A search for balance and harmony

“A quest for balance and harmony…”

Paul Zimmerman in conversation with Barbara Christol.

Press Interview for ARTERY NYC – October 2025

Paul Zimmerman: How did you discover your interest in art?

Barbara Christol: Art has always been there—like an inner language. As a child, I drew to understand the world. Later, through my studies at the Beaux-Arts de Nîmes and the Sorbonne University in Paris, I discovered that art could connect forms, sensations, and ideas—a kind of sensitive geometry.

Paul Zimmerman: What is the most challenging aspect of your work?

Barbara Christol: Finding the balance between precision and freedom. My work relies on structured compositions, but I always seek to infuse them with breath, dreaminess, and a poetic vibration. This dialogue between control and abandonment is demanding, but essential.

Paul Zimmerman: What is your artistic process? How do you create your works?

Barbara Christol: I often begin with an intuition—a color, a shape, a feeling. Then comes the composition, which is highly constructed, almost architectural. I use mixed media, sometimes natural pigments, and I let the gesture refine what the eye is trying to express—a process that balances instinct and intention.

Paul Zimmerman: Do you have a particular objective in mind when you begin a new piece?

Barbara Christol: I seek to create a resonant space. Each work is an attempt to capture a subtle emotion, an invisible presence. I don’t seek to illustrate, but to evoke—to open a door to the viewer’s imagination.

Paul Zimmerman: How do you know when a work is finished?

Barbara Christol: It’s a question of silence. When the work no longer asks for anything, when it breathes on its own, I know it is ready to live.

Paul Zimmerman: Has your practice evolved over time?

Barbara Christol: Yes, it has become more refined. Over time, I’ve learned to trust the essential—to leave more room for emptiness and intuition. My work has become more meditative, more open.

Paul Zimmerman: Which artists influence you the most?

Barbara Christol: I’m inspired by artists like Agnes Martin, for her rigor and spirituality, Zao Wou-Ki, for his way of making space vibrate, and Kandinsky, for his exploration of abstraction and inner resonance. I also draw inspiration from poetry, architecture, and dance—all those who work with rhythm, silence, and space. Music occupies a central place in my life. Many of my works reference it, echoing its structure, its emotional depth, and its invisible architecture.

Paul Zimmerman: How would you define yourself as an artist?

Barbara Christol: I would say I’m a seeker of sensitive forms. My work is both geometric and poetic—an attempt to connect the visible with the invisible. Painting allows me to express what cannot always be said, what is felt before it is understood. It is a silent yet vibrant language, conveying emotions, inner states, and intuitions beyond words. I approach my practice with humility—attentive to nuance, open to what emerges, guided by the conviction that the work speaks its own language.

Paul Zimmerman: What are you working on right now?

Barbara Christol: I’m currently finishing two series that echo each other. The first, Blue Is the Color of My Dreams, is a group of paintings exploring the emotional and symbolic depth of the color blue. Through geometric compositions and subtle optical effects, I seek to create a dialogue between structure and fluidity—between what is seen and what is felt. The second, Filigrane, is a series of drawings on Arches paper made with India ink and embroidered thread. These works introduce a new form of sensoriality—tactile, delicate, and meditative—where gesture becomes thread and vibration. Both series will be exhibited this fall in Paris and at the LA Art Show in Los Angeles in January 2026. They form a visual and poetic conversation between the mediums—inviting us to slow down perception and allow nuance to emerge.

Paul Zimmerman: What is the main message of your work?

Barbara Christol: My work is a quest for balance and harmony—between structure and breath, silence and vibration. I seek to create spaces for contemplation, to invite slowness and feeling. It’s about presence and connection—between oneself and the world, between the tangible and the intangible. I offer visual universes where my gesture acts as a revealer—bringing out emotion, rhythm, and the discreet resonance that surfaces beneath the surface.

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