Wander up the main street of Andratx on a Wednesday during the market and you will find a door open. It’s the entrance to artist Line Bank’s studio and if you pop your head inside you will be greeted by a bombardment of colours, everyone it would seem, except black. “I don’t do black”, Line (pronounced Lina) tells me. But aren’t Danish people known for their choice of muted, stylish colours I say. Line rolls her eyes and smiles, “Not me!”
Line and her husband Jesper first bought a house in Mallorca in 2008 in Cala Ratjada, and became residents of the island in 2012. A long commute from Cala Ratjada down to Son Bugadelles every working day became too much for Jesper and they looked around in the SW for a property. “We lived for a while in Palma and then we found this house.” Previously a commercial property, as a furniture shop and before that a pharmacy, the building has been completely reformed, allowing Line to have her studio on the ground floor with lots and lots of natural light. A great space to work in.
Everything is organised, the brushes clean and lined up neatl, many tubes of paint, bottles, jars, cans, all ready for action. So this is your sacred space I say. Line smiles again, “Yes, no one tells me what to do in here” with glee in her voice.
Line mostly paints flowers, plants and women. The flowers are abstract, huge and multicoloured, with patterns within the patterns. The women are big hipped and busty with wild hair and so many colours bursting out of them that you could imagine they hold a thousand stories within them. They have a psychedelic quality to them, a Sgt Pepper vibe I say, have you ever dropped acid, I ask jokingly. “No, but the Beatles were my era for sure,” Line replies. She picks up a papier mache animal that is stood by a window, “He went to Barcelona to an exhibition and they dropped him. His ear got broken, and his tail, so I joined them back on with some gold paint, the way they repair a cup in Japan.” He looks more like a pig than a goat now, I say, and she grins at me with joy glittering in her eyes. “Maybe so!”
Have you always been an artist?
No, no, I won't call it a midlife crisis, but when the kids went away, I had time to myself. My husband was a competitive sailor, and when he stopped competing we stopped being on the road. I was the “Domestic President” as it were. In charge of food and logistics, and I worked in computing. So when the kids grew up and we moved here a friend of mine suggested I take some online art courses. So I did, and that’s how I started. So the art was somewhere inside, it’s intuitive painting.
What inspires you?
I love to be outside. I love the old fashioned gates and doors here and I love the colours, the flowers, the sunshine.
When you first started did you feel nervous showing your work?
Yes, that was also in the beginning of Facebook. When I posted the first painting, I felt really nervous. But now I'm okay. I'm happy if people like my work, but I know it doesn’t suit everybody, and that is also okay.
How do you know when a painting is finished?
I know when I am on the right track when I get goosebumps. The hair on my women takes some time, I talk to them as I am painting them, until I get their hair right.
What do you love about Mallorca?
The light and the opportunity to be outside a lot of the time. We don’t have that in Denmark. And the people are really very nice. We have some lovely neighbours that are very caring. And I love to walk in the mountains, it is so beautiful here.
And what is not so good about the island?
I don’t understand why people come on holiday here and just get drunk for a week and then go back home again. I don’t understand them at all. When we lived in Cala Ratjada I found it very noisy because of the tourism.
What's the difference between Denmark and Mallorca?
The cost of living here is so much lower than Denmark, the price of food for example, and car taxes, are so much lower here.
What is your secret to staying fit and healthy?
I workout at CrossFit Mallorca and then I eat properly, and just have fun and enjoy my life. I don’t sit around and get grumpy, I paint!
What are your tips for living on the island?
Don't live in a house near a hotel! And go and eat in the local restaurants. They're doing fine food. Good food. And they are nice.
You can read more about Line on her website: www.banksabstractions.com You can visit her on market days in Andratx. “I had to close during COVID times, and yes; I should open my door more often now, so tell the people they can come to visit me!”
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