David Aiu Servan-Schreiber: “Not having any faith is hell.”
A young artist with a passion for the celestial.
Biography
“Without passion there is no art, only technique.” This quote by Mary Robinette Kowal illustrates what it is that separates the talented artists from the great ones, passion for their work. David Aiu Servan-Schreiber is living proof of this concept.
David is a young, London-based French artist. He’s incredibly talented, having been featured in over 10 exhibits in the past 2 years, and collaborating with companies like Laita and Pomellato. His talent is easy to see just from his incredible growth over the past couple of years, but what isn’t as clear is the tremendous passion that goes into each of his works.
Out of This World
David is best known for his recent series called “Planets.” Using gold leaves and cement, he crafts incredibly textured circles that he places onto wood canvases. Although simple in concept, the detailed designs and inspired backgrounds for each of these “planets” transforms them all into unique beauties, capturing both the mystery and allure of space. Some of his pieces are reminiscent of incredible phenomenon like solar eclipses, where as others cause you to dream about planets mankind hasn’t even discovered yet. What is most astonishing about these pieces however, is the inspiration behind them.
David imparts his own values and beliefs into each of his works, and that is especially true for his “Planets” series. Having grown up without any religion, David spent much of his life searching for something greater to look towards. Eventually, he found something that was both amazing and mysterious enough for him to believe in, planets. According to David, Planets “is a way to share my interpretation of religion.”
With each of his works he tries to convey the wonder and mysticism he feels when he thinks of planets, similar to how devout Christians feel when they see works depicting Christ. He even uses gold leaves because he wants his planets to shine, in the way that other religions make their icons do so. David’s love for planets has even turned him into a tremendous activist for things like climate change and deforestation. Now of course, regardless of what you do or don’t believe in, David’s ability to translate his personal beliefs into such beautiful imagery is certainly something to be admired.
Other Works
Of course, David’s other works also carry some very unique inspiration behind them. In his Idilian series, David uses bright colors and an alphabet he created in order to construct stunning abstract works, almost reminiscent of street graffiti. According to David, this is a reference to both his family literary roots and his struggles with grammar. By creating his own alphabet, David can express himself in his own way, through the calligraphy of his words instead of their meaning. In his gold series, David used his own alphabet once more, instead covering it in gold leaves this time. This creates stunning imagery that looks like it was pulled straight from a pharaoh’s tomb.
David fills each of his pieces with some of himself. His passion, his beliefs, and his creativity, gives his works a unique style that deserve to be appreciated. Overall, I don’t think his creations could be more valuable even if they were made completely out of gold.
