Description of the work

This painting is a custom commission for forest lovers. I drew inspiration from their own photographs. Among all the images provided, one immediately caught my eye. It had everything I love: rich color contrasts, a wide variety of plant textures, a deep perspective, and a foreground teeming with details to explore with my brush. But it was two small mushrooms, standing side by side, that really caught my attention.

​

Beyond the visual composition, it was the symbolism of the scene that touched me. For once, it wasn't the trees that took center stage, but everything that revolved around them: that discreet but essential life. The ground covered with dead leaves speaks of cycles, transformation, and renewal. The moss on the trunks evokes the memory of time gently anchoring itself, without a sound. And these two mushrooms, standing side by side, stand out as a symbol of connection and complicity. Through them, I wanted to celebrate all that nature offers that is most humble and essential: life emerging from the ground, the intimate relationship between the elements, the beauty of what is often overlooked.

​

I am no expert in mycology, so I cannot say whether the mushrooms depicted here are edible. But what I do know is that they are part of the mysterious and beneficial magic that the forest offers to those who take the time to look at it and love it. Through them, I wanted to pay tribute to the generosity of nature—nurturing, medicinal, deeply alive. And as in a good sauce, it is in the harmony of the elements that all the richness lies.

​

*For those unfamiliar with the cuisine, sauce "à la forestière" is a savory mushroom-based sauce that evokes the rich flavors of the forest.