Valéry Nadal holds an executive position in human resources management. She is also in heart and soul a visual artist who masters her trade. In times when psychologists seem to agree that our modern technological societies suffer from a levelling effect on human imagination, to practice two very different activities on the contrary is a good exemple of diversification and creativity.

We got to know Valerie Nadal when she visited our exhibition at the Craft Gallery in Dieulefit in May. She walked in and introduced herself added that she was also an artist. There was a cheerfulness about Valérie that immediately appealed to us. She liked the exhibition and in particular Anke’s collages. We were soon chatting away as though we were old friends. When I checked her website, her work corresponded with her fresh and open personality. Her engravings in particular are original and poetic with a good dose of humour.

I tried but I did not find one single work by Valérie that doesn’t bring a smile. They all speak of Spring, flowers everywhere, young women with wistful eyes and fluttering lashes or eyelids bashfully cast down, birds flittering across an open sky, little cabins hidden in the woods. The engraving technique she favours is assured and the message explodes like a multicoloured bouquet to remind us that there is beauty everywhere around us.

Valery has no formal training as an artist, something she half regrets. On the other hand, her firm intent to master the skills required by her art led her to follow intensive courses in oils and watercolours, and at a later stage acrylics. As she was obliged to tread her own path, she automatically avoided the pitfalls of an academic approach – which some artists claim to spend years trying to get rid of- and consequently developed her own particular style unhampered. After she discovered the art of engraving, which has become her favourite medium, she sought the advice of confirmed artists in the field who helped her perfect her technique. As soon as Valérie starts talking about the various aspects of engraving, she is clearly in her element. She describes the various materials engraving plates are made of: copper, zinc, linoleum, plexiglass, Rhenalon, etc, the importance of using the right kind of paper on which the print is made and how it must be correctly humidified. In her case she favours ivory quality Fabriano Rosapina 285 gr, the squality of the ink and last but not least the pleasure of carving the plate with a chisel. There is also the feeling of satisfaction (or of disappointment) on seeing the result when the print comes fresh from the press. I can’t help remembering how her eyes shone in anticipation of the likely results when she told us at our first meeting that she had just bought a high-quality printing press in Holland! As the use of colours is essential for Valérie she likes to experiment and find ways to enhance them in order to obtain the sparkling prints that characterise her work. I should add that Valérie has gained recognition as an artist: she is a member of the “Maison des Artistes” and her art works are much sought-after.

How does Valéry feel about the role of the artist in our troubled world? Is art a useful activity? “Art may appear to be superfluous if you look around the world today but for that very reason it might also be vital. Without the support of art, the harsh reality of life would probably be unbearable. Art in my case has undeniably had a very positive effect. With regard to my prints in particular, I like to believe that for some buyers they are valuable, comforting and heart-warming little touches of joy. It is how I personally feel when I look at the works I have bought from other artists and that have become part of my surroundings. It would make me sad if they were no longer there.”

“I probably inherited my love for art from home. My father who was an engineer is a talented amateur painter and although he likes the Impressionists, he loves to paint dark night scenes! As for my mother she collected posters of works by Expressionist painters like Macke, Kandinsky or Hundertwasser but also those of Klimt, Matisse, Modigliani, Chagall and in an altogether different vein of the American painter Edward Hopper.”

Finally, I asked Valérie if she could categorise her own form of art. “I suppose you could say it is art for art’s sake but there are certainly also autobiographical and feminist sides. Take the fresh young women I like to portray, they do I think reflect some of my moods, for instance when I am reflective, determined to be independent, happy, sad or melancholy. Fortunately, they are by far joyous so I think it is safe to assume that to a degree they mirror who I am.”