Alchemy concerns itself with the transmutation of matter. Traditionally, alchemists attempted to turn base metals into gold, discover elixirs that would grant immortality and abolish disease. Whilst much of this medieval science may have been defunct and replaced with modern science and chemistry, the art of alchemy is still very much alive thanks to artists like Fran de Anda. His work transforms blank white canvases into works of pure artistic gold. His Bosch-inspired creatures offer glimpses into sacred practices and ideologies as he works to keep the art of alchemy and its centuries old symbolism alive. His work asks questions, offers suggestions and ultimately works to discover the many mysteries of our universe.
Fran de Anda is a Mexico City based oil painter who creates surrealist dreamscapes and anthropomorphic characters that focus on alchemy, the human condition and ancient myths as he explores themes of life, death, nature, the sacred and the profane. Alongside oils, Fran also utilises gold and silver leaf to further lean into the themes of his work and takes inspiration for classical art periods including the Renaissance and Baroque to create works that feel timeless. Fran’s work encourages viewers to ask questions and discover magic as they seek their own place and purpose within our world.
Fran de Anda is currently represented by Bender Gallery.
Interview with Fran de Anda
Many pieces from your body of work, including ‘Stellar Sonata‘ and ‘The Sky Magician‘, feel reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch. Can you tell me about some of the artists who’ve inspired you? Is Bosch one of them?
Without a doubt, Hieronymus Bosch is the artist who has most influenced my painting, but over the years other artists have also been an inspiration, such as Leonardo da Vinci, Gustave Moreau and Klimt, to name the most influential for me.
I also feel a strong connection to the Symbolist movement; speaking of what is not immediately visible is wonderful to me and the power of symbols acting at a subconscious level seems very powerful.
Themes including creation, life, death, fate and alchemy play important roles within your work. Can you tell me more about your interest in these topics and how they manifest within your body of work?
My work features recurring themes such as the balance between life and death, magic, alchemy, destiny, and our sacred relationship with nature. For me, these represent the eternal archetypes that humanity has constructed over centuries to try to understand its place in the world and attempt to make it a better place.
What are your thoughts on how alchemy intersects art? Do you think these topics go hand in hand with one another?
I don’t know if others see them as intertwined, but for me they certainly are, since art and alchemy share the principle of creation, as well as the search for answers to questions we’ve asked ourselves for centuries: why are we here, where are we headed, how can we find balance among all beings on the planet? Art is a powerful tool that tries to keep us aware that everything is connected and we are all part of the universe.
In a world where “destruction” seems to be the most prevalent path, I prefer the path of “construction,” which balances the scales even if it seems to be the longer way.
One thing I love about your work is that many of your subjects are anthropomorphic versions of real-life animals such as fish, birds, cats, and bears. Are each of these animals symbolic in that they have a strong connection to themes such as alchemy and creation?
In my paintings, I try to create an inner world where a human being, a bird or any other life is sacred, where an owl appears as a magician, a bear is an oracle that speaks to you of destiny, or a flower creates a symbol that shows you the way to go; a dreamlike place that tries to unveil the secret mechanisms of the world that is sometimes science and other times magic, a space where symbols build another language and this language helps us to understand the mysteries of the universe and by reflection look inwards in search of answers.
Gold leaf is a consistent medium throughout many of your paintings, is this connected to alchemical motifs?
Yes it is, gold or silver leaf appears in almost all my work and symbolises the sacred; it is the light of the Sun and the Moon, it is the mystical refraction that appears in dreams as a prophetic sign of the divine presence which, for me is nature; thus, in my work humans, flora, fauna, and insects appear without any distinction, all worthy of existing and where we are all united by an indivisible and sacred bond.
What does your creative process look like when starting a new painting/body of work? Do you have a routine you like to follow?
The beginning of a piece isn’t very clear to me, because the idea is sometimes built in separate parts. While watching a film, an emotion arises that stays with me for several days and is complemented when I hear a melody or read a phrase. Then, at another time, it takes shape because I drew a bird on a branch or an insect on the pavement that caught my attention.
That’s when I jot it down in my sketchbook, which I always carry with me. Then everything calms down and after several days, I flip through the sketchbook again, and suddenly connections emerge between pages from different times. This overlap of notes suggests a piece to me.
I think my sketchbook is a kind of logbook where I record the flow of my thoughts; there I write down phrases, book titles, films I want to see, poetry I’ve read, or elements I’ve drawn. It’s undoubtedly so to speak, where the magic happens. What follows is a bit more routine: to do a more detailed study that resolves the composition, colour palette and hours in pictorial development sessions.
When you’re not painting, what do you get up to?
I try to do everything I can to see the people I love, read, watch movies I’ve put off, read again, go for walks, sunbathe, disconnect from everything digital, and try to slow down everything that daily life marks as urgent.
What’s next for you? Any exciting projects in the works that you can tell our readers a little bit about?
I’ve been going around in circles with a concept; if until now I’ve focused on making gold and silver leaf appear in my work as a representation of divine light, I’m still thinking about how to approach its opposite, that is, the concept of emptiness and mystery of the absence of light, as part of that balance that Jung talks about: “There is no light without shadow and no psychic wholeness without imperfection”.
Fran de Anda Social Media Accounts
Instagram | Bender Gallery Profile
