From the 'darkness' of Stockholm to the light of Malaga

The Costa del Sol has long been an escape for foreign artists looking for a quiet haven in which to focus on their work, and none so much as Swedish surrealist and abstract painter Henrik Diamant. Born in Sweden in 1964, Diamant arrived on the Costa del Sol in 2016, following a divorce, and after closing his PR agency in Stockholm. He immediately fell in love with the area, finding a house in the Mijas mountains where he could concentrate on his painting. He found the light and lifestyle "sparked his imagination" more than the "cold and darkness" of Stockholm, which he says is like "living in a fridge with no light".

Diamant began painting as a child and his work is inspired by the structured forms of Swiss-French architectural painter Le Corbusier, and the symbolic style of Spanish surrealist painter and sculptor Joan Miró.

"I can use egg tempera on top of acrylic, gesso and occasionally mixed media to build texture and depth. I use earth tones and colour schemes from the 15th and 17th centuries. That gives the work depth - even when it's abstract," the 61-year-old artist tells SUR in English.

Diamant was surrounded by art in his youth, as his grandfather collected modern art. He was captivated by Italian painter Modigliani at the age of 16, after he saw one of his portraits at the Louvre; and later, by Miró, who "really got under my skin". He was stimulated by Miró's Retrato 2, which he described as "sheer joy to look at": one of his works that was inspired by this painting is now in a private collection in Los Angeles, a work the artist said is "not Miró, but maybe it belongs to that school of playful abstraction".

"I've been drawing and painting since I was a kid, growing up in a house full of art because my dad and granddad collected it. My grandfather once said, 'Miró can't draw a line wrong.' I didn't get it then, but I do now," he explains.

Diamant, whose paintings echo the surrealist and abstract approaches of dreamlike imagery and spontaneous forms, was also captivated by Picasso, who he says was "a genius from another era".

"I was inspired by Picasso, but in a different way. If you try to paint something Picassiano, he always wins. Over everyone. He's untouchable. Miró gives you more space to explore without being crushed by genius," he says.

However, the self-taught artist is somewhat diffident about his own work, even though he has had several exhibitions in Sweden and also here on the Costa del Sol, like the current collection that is on show at the Banana Kitchen in the Centro Idea shopping centre in Mijas.

"I'm not sure if I can call myself an artist. I wouldn't call myself a musician just because I can play Twinkle Twinkle with one finger. Same with painting. Just putting something on canvas doesn't make it art. But when a painting gives me some of the joy I feel from a great Miró, then I know I'm on the right track," he explains.

The artist says that he "enjoys nothing more than painting in his studio in Mijas", a space where other artists and art lovers can visit to view and discuss his work, and art in general. His works incorporate layers, muted and complementary colours, blending abstract and figurative elements, employing traditional materials and techniques, although he claims to never know when a work is actually finished.

"If you paint a lot, you sometimes hit something great, but I don't always know when to stop. I paint over finished pieces - even after signing them. Sometimes I keep a head or some shapes and repaint everything else. Under many of my paintings there's another one hiding," he explains.

Although he paints daily, Diamant says that he often finds himself in a creative rut, or an 'art block'.

"You can stare at a canvas for hours. Then at midnight, there it is, and you continue. A lot of it is just finding your way back into the painting. You learn when to stop, when to start again," he concludes.