Introducing Sailev

Sailev is an artist who is deeply involved : Art is the medium with which he wishes to reach us, touch us and raise our ecological awareness, animal rights in particular, his own personal battle. And, if he’s in our selection, it’s because he does this with TALENT and artistic sincerity.

Obviously, Sailev is an artist who possesses a magnificent technique and whose limits he continually challenges through hard work. But we can never say it enough : technique does not make an Artist. In addition to the aesthetics, Sailev’s talent resides in his artistic universe…a universe that communicates messages which pervade his artworks; a universe that created itself, as did his involvement, because of the person he is and the life he has led.

Sailev benefitted from a childhood in which he was able to awaken his curiosity with numerous activities and fields of knowledge. That is how he became infatuated with mythology, reveling in (and copying) dictionaries with the firm intention of knowing all the mythical and mystical characters and their stories…But, of all these fields, only one has stayed with him : painting. He began at the age of 8, with a professor he referred to as “Master” (he still does). With a very academic and methodical approach, he learned illustration, perspectives, watercolors which eventually led to tackling oil painting. In addition to the challenge it represented, it provided him with escapism, and he discovered a passion for Rubens and…baroque art altogether…

At the age of 17, he set aside his paintbrushes in order to devote his time entirely to his studies and his professional career, as intense and searing as it was removed from the artistic world. At 32, he became Vice President of an international food-processing company that specialized in…the meat sector. Not only did he witness the farming of animals and their mass slaughtering, he was also a Participant. In the beginning, he followed a blinded way of thinking with regards solely to performance and profitability. But, gradually, he began to loathe what he participated in, and eventually feeling disgust. And, all the more so, since in order to steer far from it, he began travelling around the world with an unquenchable thirst for…nature, wild, untamed and beautiful. The very same life and nature he destroyed on an industrial scale…the dichotomy, between his professional life and what he experienced during his travels, fringed madness.

In 2017, while working and residing in Hong Kong, two things triggered him. He recounts :

The first : " During a fabulous trip in the Vietnamese countryside, my lover asked me what my most heartfelt wish was. My answer was immediate : to paint, to be an artist. He responded : ‘so why don’t you ? Live your dream !’ So, I purchased a canvas on cardboard and began reproducing Caravaggio’s “La Meduse”." This was not an insignificant choice, but symbolic…Sailev began painting again…

The second : " Then there was this trip to Borneo (looking to escape from my professional life) whereupon, in the jungle, I fell face to face with…an orangutan…a fireball, the color of his fur radiating…I had to paint it, while assessing, at the same time, what man had put this animal through, making it an endangered species…”

His mind was made up : he wanted to paint and become a full-fledged artist. He resigned, and consequently became an animal advocate, fighting against human folly and its destruction of Nature and Life, and all their Beauty. One thing led to another…he painted and painted and painted…Simon L. became Sailev; the artist emerged and began sharing his artworks on social media. He entered competitions and exhibited his artworks at gatherings such as the “Hong Kong Human Rights Arts Prize”…He also exhibited his works in Hong Kong’s PMQ : he gained attention and the critiques were excellent. Sailev gained recognition as an artist and realized his first sales. He also became a member of the Artist for Conservation, the greatest eco-artist association whose members give a percentage of their earnings to nature protection NGOs (which will be the case if you purchase one of Sailev’s artworks).

Which brings us to his artworks, and to what distinguishes him, his Talent and universe. Sailev decided to make Art his messenger, not by condemning Man or denouncing the hideousness he is responsible for, but rather through Beauty and all things sacred, by mystifying animals and nature, and a narrative using metaphors and symbols. “This leaves room for hope”. You must recall his fondness of Greek mythology and of baroque art…they permeate his artworks, with their codes and styles…

The style and aesthetics sublimate and consecrate the beast. The symbolism and metaphorical create the narrative (and allow various interpretations). With the perfect equilibrium and inspiration of the baroque art codes and styles (as for example, the halo of sacred light which can be often seen), and mythology (when working on a white background), Sailev leads us into his universe, well beyond the hyperrealism towards which he strives : he ushers us towards a timeless surrealism (between classicism and modernity) in which the beast is not only Beautiful, but mystical. Beauty and sacred sublimate…you’ll notice that Man is rarely present; when he is, he dons ugliness or inferiority. The stake in Sailev’s Art is to restore the animal kingdom and nature to their rightful place; an environment in which man is just passing through at the scale of the world’s history. Man borrows land from nature, whereas the animal kingdom is sacred and Beautiful, with all the respect that Man should show it, instead of destroying it.

It is this perfect harmony, created by the alchemy of the inspirations, style and symbolism that give rise to his artworks and to their aesthetic strength which serve the message they carry; through their emotions and Beauty, Sailev raises our awareness.

The artist is bubbling with ideas and artistic projects that will push his Art even further within the scopes of his activism. Amongst his ambitions is his desire to transition towards greater formats…very big, monumental even…And we can only encourage him to do so as we encourage you to remember his name and his style, and to add him to your favorites, whether you are sensitive to his Art or to animal rights, or, better yet, both !

Pierre Paul Rubens