This Swiss artist mixes ancient painting materials with contemporary abstract art │Christiane Tabord Deillon

At Women in Arts Network, while reviewing submissions for Landscape and Places, we came across many beautiful interpretations of nature and atmosphere. But Christiane Tabord Deillon’s work felt different to us because it seemed less focused on painting places and more focused on painting energy itself.

Christiane is a selected artist for the exhibition, and her paintings feel deeply connected to intuition, stillness, emotion, and presence. Soft pigments, layered textures, organic forms, flowing compositions — the work seems less interested in describing a physical landscape and more interested in capturing invisible states of feeling and vibration that exist around us all the time.

And honestly, listening to her speak about her process made the work feel even more personal.

Before painting, Christiane takes time to meditate and centre herself. That state of consciousness becomes part of the artwork itself. She spoke beautifully about creating not just through technique, but through mindfulness, intention, and emotional alignment, allowing the work to emerge from somewhere deeper than thought alone.

You can feel that throughout the paintings. There’s also something fascinating about her relationship with materials. She works with powdered pigments because they feel more alive and vibrant to her than traditional tube paint, almost like carrying their own energy within them. Even the act of preparing her own paint becomes part of the ritual and connection to the work.

And beneath all of it runs this deep belief that art can influence the emotional atmosphere of a space and the people living within it. Some viewers meditate in front of her paintings. Others place them in therapy spaces. Some simply stand in front of the work and unexpectedly become emotional. Hearing that made complete sense to us because her paintings really do feel created from a place of sincerity and inner attention rather than surface alone.

There’s something very grounding about that approach. Especially now, when so much imagery feels fast, distracted, and disconnected from human presence. Christiane’s work moves in the opposite direction entirely.

Now let’s hear from Christiane herself about intuitive painting, mindfulness, creative flow, and creating art that speaks as much to the heart and emotional energy of a space as it does to the eye.

Q1. Christiane, after years of studying technique and the masters, you’ve spoken about feeling creatively blocked, what did it take to reconnect with your own voice?

Yes, indeed, I had difficulty creating my own works, creating and sharing my inner world. It was difficult because I felt that as an artist I had things to say, but they wouldn’t come out. It was thanks to various exercises and techniques, notably India ink, breathing, and pure expression, that little by little I was able to break down all the mental barriers that prevented me from creating. And today, I, in turn, pass on these techniques.

Q2. You begin each work with meditation and stillness, how does that preparation shape the way you paint?

If I don’t meditate beforehand, it doesn’t prevent me from creating because it’s not something I need to paint or draw. However, the energy of my work might be different. Indeed, painting in a certain state of consciousness is part of my artistic process.

Q3. You work with powdered pigments alongside paint, what does that material give you that traditional paint doesn’t?

The pigments bring something to the material, something almost alive, vibrant, that tube paint simply can’t provide. Furthermore, preparing my own paint allows me to develop a conscious and deliberate gestural approach. It also gives me a sense of connection to the painter’s craft of the past.

Q4. You work with Chinese ink as well as paint. What does ink do in your practice is it the spontaneity, the permanence, the way it moves on the surface?

Today, I very rarely use India ink for artwork; it’s more for personal projects, inner and spiritual exercises. I believe the universe can be found in a brushstroke of India ink, but I haven’t reached that point in my practice yet.

Q5. You create both paintings and illustrations using different mediums, what does illustration allow you to express that painting doesn’t?

These are different projects with different purposes. I’ve illustrated texts for specific projects (illustrating stories and oracle cards). My work as a painter is what I primarily do in my practice. But indeed, the common thread is the intuitive aspect of the creative process.

Q6. Titles like Portal, Between Land and Water, and Creative Force suggest movement and transition are you painting emotional states, or the passage between them?

I paint states, vibrations that are part of our environment. I paint what I perceive of these states, of these elements with which we interact, and to what extent we are sensitive to them.

Q7. Someone brings one of your paintings into their home, how do you hope it slowly shapes the space and the people living with it over time?

I’ve already received some feedback from clients about this. Some people have used my canvases as meditation aids, and others have placed them in their therapy offices. For me, a work of art, created consciously, conveys a vibration, an energy, and if someone buys one of my pieces, it’s because they feel a connection to it. Some people have felt something powerful, sometimes even shedding a few tears of emotion in front of certain pieces, and that has always been very beautiful for me as well.

Q8. You left a stable career in pharmacy to fully pursue painting and guidance, what made that leap feel necessary for you?

It happened little by little. Initially, I didn’t quit pharmacy to devote myself fully to painting, but to raise my children. It was only once they were older, and I had more time, that painting took on a larger role in my life.

Q9. You advocate for an art rooted in harmony and consciousness how do you see that impacting viewers?

In this age of artificial intelligence, I am convinced that what is created consciously, with the soul, elevates us. Sacred art is part of human history, and what is created with the soul, our sacred essence, is our connection to the universe. It must be felt with the heart to truly understand this approach, and that is my intention: an art of the heart.

Q10. Looking back, how has your understanding of art and your role as an artist changed over time?

Over time, my approach has become clearer; it’s as if my message and intention have become increasingly precise and aligned with my deepest self. I don’t compromise who I am; I paint what inspires me, what feels profoundly right for me. This goes hand in hand with the practice of mindfulness.

Q11. What do you hope someone feels when they stand in front of your work on a deeper, emotional or energetic level?

I believe my work can be interpreted on several levels. Some people are drawn to its appearance, color, composition, or subject matter. But sometimes, others are deeply sensitive to the energetic energy emanating from the piece.

This always gives me particular pleasure because I feel better understood in my creative process in those cases. Moreover, that’s why I create these works; it’s not for myself, but so that they bring something beautiful to the world, something that touches the soul.

Q12. What advice would you give to artists who feel something deeper inside them but don’t yet know how to fully trust or express it through their work?

That’s exactly what I offer in my coaching. I offer a reconnection to the heart and to our deepest selves. It’s about calming the mind and all the barriers that disrupt the creative flow. We have many patterns that prevent us from being and creating fully.

I invite my students to return to their bodies and hearts through a short meditative practice and then to let themselves go and create. It’s also a practice that takes time to establish and goes hand in hand with personal growth.

As we wrapped our conversation with Christiane, we found ourselves thinking about how rare it is to encounter work created with this much inner stillness behind it. Nothing feels forced in her paintings.

The flowing forms, soft pigments, layered textures, the openness inside the compositions everything feels like it was created slowly, intentionally, and with real emotional presence behind it. And honestly, that changes the way you experience the work.

We really loved hearing her talk about painting as something connected to mindfulness and consciousness rather than simply production. For Christiane, creating seems less about controlling the canvas and more about entering a certain state emotionally and allowing the work to emerge from there.

You can feel that sincerity in the paintings. There’s also something beautiful about the way she describes art as carrying energy into a space. Not just visually decorating it but emotionally influencing the atmosphere around it. Once you hear her speak about that, the emotional responses people have to her work suddenly make complete sense. The paintings feel calming without becoming passive. Grounding without becoming heavy.

For collectors who are drawn toward work rooted in intuition, mindfulness, and emotional depth, Christiane’s paintings offer something far beyond decoration. They create spaces that feel softer, quieter, and more emotionally grounded over time.

That’s a rare quality for artwork to hold. And artists who create from such an intentional and deeply human place are always worth returning to.

To follow Christiane’s journey and see more of her work, find her through the links below.