Marc Janus

The first time I found the stamps I use in my work was in Asia in 2007 and I have been working with them ever since. In my artistic practice, I don’t seek the geometric and figurative result of the artisan, but the creation of a chromatic harmony through chaos and disorder. Before finding those stamps, I used to decorate with diverse found objects, such as kitchen paper. Whenever a friend came to visit me I asked them to bring a few rolls of kitchen paper from their neighborhood, whether it was Albacete or NYC. When I found the stamps I was traveling through Nepal, and the trip through the continent that I had previously planned changed completely in order to follow the stamps. I ended up visiting places I wouldn’t have known otherwise; I met wonderful people; I saw and felt things that broadened my sight. This is why the relationship I have with those stamps is one of gratitude. Currently I’m preparing my third research trip. The artisanal work with stamps is an art practice that has been used decorating fabric and paper since 10,000 b.C. During these millennia, it has been used in different religious contexts by Buddhists, Hindus, and Muslims in places such as China, Japan, India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Afghanistan. In our time, the industrial machine has been replaced by handmade work, and this kind of decoration with stamps only remains in small regions as an artisanal practice.