Erzsébet Furmen has been developing a highly original art form for several years now. Forget painting, drawing or even sculpture: this Hungarian artist creates poetic compositions using… pebbles. She creates naïve, peaceful paintings using pebbles, pebbles and small pieces of gravel that she picks up on her walks, choosing the stones with the most interesting shapes, textures and veins to enhance the details of her creations. A true lover of nature, Erzsébet Furmen can spend many hours looking for special pebbles. Stones that are commonplace to the average person, but which, for the artist, inspire sweet scenes of life.
My name is Erzsébet Furmen. The colour and shape of pebbles, the richness of their patterns and the beauty of nature inspire my pebble photos and works of art. As a pebble artist, it’s really amazing to ‘cooperate’ with nature. I use all the pebbles in their original form shaped only by nature itself – this is the essence of pebble art. I make my pebble pictures with all my heart, joyfully, which I hope is noticeable. It gives me great pleasure to hear from my customers that my pebble photos are ‘warming’, ‘soothing’, ‘send a message of peace’ or ‘thought-provoking’. It’s that ‘something extra’ that I can bring with my pebble photos. I hope that I’ll feel even more pleasure and pass it on – when from inspiration to realisation – the pebble image finds its owner or someone finds the image that really relates to them. I’m happy if I can show something beyond myself with my photos. According to my faith, all creations point to God, the Creator. She is the true “Pebble Artist”.
Pebbles are both static and dynamic. It all depends on the extent to which the artist can imagine his feelings, the movements created in his mind in the image of the pebble, the finished work of art. Time and again, feedback indicates that my images “are almost in motion” and that their atmosphere evokes deep emotions in the viewer. This is how pebble art works.
In the process of making my pebble photos, many unexpected details are shaped, I let my fantasy work and also let my feelings and thoughts permeate the message. In this way, the finished image becomes dynamic despite the fact that the pebbles themselves play a static role in the artwork. The result is like a photograph taken at the right moment. It includes the movement, the feeling, the story that can continue. In this way, there are not only pebbles in the images of pebbles, but also invisible fingerprints and “soul prints”.
The creative process teaches me to let go because it’s always hard to let go of my pebble photos. However, the feeling of letting things go makes me feel free. True pleasure wants to be shared with others, whereas insisting on something makes us selfish and rigid. It’s a wonderful feeling to see when a pebble photo finds its owner, even if it means I have to say goodbye to part of my pebble collection.
I often base my work on my clients’ ideas, but I use my artistic freedom to produce art. If I listen to myself, I like simplicity and clear lines. I believe that the most essential elements of life are based on the simplest things. For me, art is about adding that little something extra to simple subjects such as the love between two people or the members of a family. It’s not just recreating a genre scene, it’s adding something to it that’s worth stopping and thinking about. Pebble art really makes this possible.
I believe that the finished work of art, the image of the pebble, is not just my creation, but rather a mutual creation of the artist and the recipient. These two elements together constitute the art of the pebble. It only becomes a real work of art if it really means something to the recipient, who can add his or her own feelings and thoughts. Pebbles have no faces, so anyone can participate and play a part in a pebble painting…
All, so very beautiful!! I’ve seen this same kind of art in an art shop in Fredericksburg Texas. It is so very down to earth yet totally inspirational !!!
Thank you for your kind comments