French artists Gabrielle Rul and Etienne Quesnay, photographed throughout by Thomas Dossou

Gabrielle Rul and Etienne Quesnay are a creative couple building their empire in the Paris art scene. Inspired by each other, their community and their life together, they create Naïve artworks in bold and brilliant colors. Their love is built on deep mutual respect, as they work to break the pattern of complicated artistic histories and celebrate each other. For Valentine's Day, the two co-created a piece for Artpser representing just that: the freedom to write one's own story.

1. Hello you two! Can you tell us about yourselves and how you both met?

G: We met through Etienne's painting, one of his watercolors depicting a smoker at a café terrace caught my eye.

E: I received a message from Gabrielle one day, on Instagram. We started talking, at first not much, and then a little, and then a lot. And then life (kindly) did the rest.

2. How does your relationship change your creative process? Do you collaborate often?

G: As we live together, my work is largely influenced because I create during our daily life. Drawing is above all a work of observation and reinterpretation for me, one can find in my sketches moments of life, always remodeled via my creative universe, but many of my drawings stem from moments of life that we go through together.

E: Gabrielle is a hard worker, an example to follow, and seeing her create inspires me to surpass myself. Our strength is that we are always kind to each other, so we always pull each other up, always congratulate each other on our successes in our respective careers, and encourage each other in times of doubt. Our two worlds have always been very similar and, over time, we have sometimes been able to unconsciously draw inspiration from each other. As far as collaborations are concerned, we only do it rarely, on the spur of the moment, to preserve a certain form of magic and spontaneity.

3. How would you define love?

G: It's everything at once. Pain, joy, doubt, certainty, sorrow, questions and answers. I really think that the sum of all these elements make up true love, it is changing, it evolves. It grows, sometimes runs out of steam and then reignites. It is complex.

E: Love is just crazy. Elusive and... indefinable!

Left: A work in progress by the artists / Right: Gabrielle and Etienne together

4. Some of the greatest artists throughout history are known largely for their love stories. Are there any that particularly resonate with you?

G: Unfortunately I only know of artist couples who have lived in each other's shadow or where rivalry has broken the love. I hope to change that for us.

E: In the same way, I have the impression that in most of these mythical couples, the man always ended up voluntarily eclipsing the woman's talent, like Rodin with Claudel, or Picasso and Dora Maar. More recently, it was Christo and Jeanne Claude who made the front page of all the newspapers... but Jeanne Claude was invisible in many headlines. We just want each other's happiness and fulfillment in our respective careers. And we will always fight for that.

5. Are there any other artists (living or dead) who you would love to collaborate with?

G: I would love to invite my characters into  Egon Schiele's landscape or village paintings.

E: More like musical artists, for me. Kanye West, Gainsbourg, Pharrell...

Left: The artists in their Paris studio / Right: Moving In, 2022 by the couple, available on Artsper

6. You live together in Paris - arguably one of the most romantic cities in the world. Where do you feel most inspired?

G: I think that the romance of a place is created with the people you meet. The most romantic city in the world can also become the loneliest when you are left to yourself. I am inspired by the people who surround me, they are the ones who live in the places, more than the places that inspire me. 

E: Paris inspires me and I never get tired of it. But I must admit that having grown up near the sea in Normandy, then in the countryside, nothing makes me feel better or freer than the sound of the waves, the seagulls, the wind, the birds.

7. For Artsper, you co-created a work to speak about your love and your art. Can you tell us more about the process behind the work?

G: This four-handed artwork perfectly represents the meeting of our two universes, like a move in two. Parts of him, parts of me. We discover each other and end up mixing and creating a unique universe. 

E: As we created this with our four hands, the story appeared before our eyes at the same time as the drawing. It is a poetic fresco of a move in which birds, clouds, characters, colors and a whole lot of other things are mixed. We hope that everyone can tell their own story from this drawing. 

8. Are you planning any new projects together for 2022?

G: We are still in January at the moment and last year was a busy one. We're full of ideas for the future, but nothing is set yet. 

E: We'll each be exhibiting a work alongside other artists at the Palais de Tokyo from February 8 to 22, 2022, with the Moleskine Foundation. For the rest, I have launched my first prints, I am thinking about creating clothes, learning mediums like ceramics and sculpture... I especially want to paint, paint, paint again. This year will be beautiful!