francis Eck

 

Francis Eck

 

born on August 7th 1949 in Dannemarie in Alsace

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Francis Eck was born on August 7th 1949 in Dannemarie in Alsace. Enraptured with nature from his earliest childhood, he spent all his free time alone in the fields and the forest, dreaming and observing animals, which he later reproduced in watercolour. Every year, during the school holidays, he went to Dunkirk and there he discovered another element that fascinated him, the sea...  He was accepted for CREPS in Boulouris when he was 18 years old and graduated with a diploma from the National Education board.
He practiced as a physical education instructor in his native country for 15 years or so until   his  insatiable desire for some sun and turquoise water prompted him to ask for a transfer to St. Barthélemy and then Guadeloupe. During this period he started to express his love for nature more and more through painting.  Alone in front of his canvas, he found himself plunging back into that happy state of solitude he remembered from his childhood. Shortly thereafter he gave up his activity with the education board and dedicated himself entirely to painting.
A combination of circumstances brought him to Saint Martin where he decided to live, but frequent trips away were necessary to inspire and renew his creative force. His sources of inspiration, which are still nature and the sea, enable him to advance gently towards the very essence of his subject. As he refines the work reality and abstraction merge, and the painting, nurtured from exterior elements, no longer exists by itself.