On Thursday the 14th of March 2024, Year 4 and 5 pupils of E.I.S visited Les Ateliers Coffi where the works of three artists were exhibited. It was an inspiration for the children, so later one of the artists was invited for an interview.

Here is their Q and A Session with one of the artists, Ms. Jasmine:

Anaya: Why did you make two paintings about royalty?

Jasmine: It’s because I think of women as queens.

 

Nora: Why did you choose the title “Shell” in one of your paintings?

Jasmine: I see women as homes, just as shells are homes to some animals.

 

Pharrell: When you were a child, which artist did you want to become?

Jasmine: I didn’t want to be like any particular artist. I wanted to be a dancer, teacher and an artist.

 

Tiana and Yohaan: Why are all your paintings about people braiding hair?

Jasmine: It’s because women should know that whatever they are going through they should always feel beautiful.

 

Fayad: How do you put in so many colour patterns and the colours have nothing to do with each other?

Jasmine: When I look the human skin closely, I see more colours than black or white.

 

Aboubacar: What made you passionate about Art?

Jasmine: It reminds me of my childhood.

 

Mathilde: Why did most of the women in your painting have babies?

Jasmine: It’s because of the theme Maternessence.

 

Phile: How did you get all of those titles?

Jasmine: Sometimes after my paintings, the title enters my mind or I dream about the title.

 

Melyna: What does the colour blue mean to you?

Jasmine: One day in Brazil my mum took me to the beach. There was a big wave that scared me and I ran away. But later I decided to confront my fears. So I went closer to the ocean and I saw a beautiful blue colour.

 

Khadijah: If you connected all your paintings, what would you see?

Jasmine: I would see many women’s voices.

 

Ariel: How many days did it take you to finish a painting?

Jasmine: Four or five days. About two or three hours per day.

 

Michael: Why are all your paintings about pregnant women braiding their hair?

Jasmine: Hmm, can you give me an idea of what I could have painted?

 

Michael: I mean you could have painted pregnant women and some other things like buying some food stuff, or pregnant women cooking food for their family.

Jasmine: Hmm, interesting, I painted pregnant women plaiting their hair because while doing their hair, women share their feelings with other women.

 

Priyanshi: Why are most of your paintings figurative?

Jasmine: I love figurative a lot because it's filled with realism.

 

Vanya: Were you glad when you were chosen to put your art in the art gallery?

Jasmine: I was so happy that I had to pinch myself to see if it was true, and it felt like I was in a dream.

 

Chehwe: Why did you choose art ?

Jasmine: Well, I would say that I didn’t choose Art; I think Art chose me.

 

Raghav: Why are some of your drawings' backgrounds white?

Jasmine; With white background, you will focus on the painting only.

 

Fenou: Why did you sign JNoelle24 on your paintings?

Jasmine: J=Jasmine, Noelle=my middle name and 24=2024 the year of the exhibition.

The visit was quite a thrilling experience for the children!