Some topics keep coming up, like a girl or a woman blowing bubbles, but paragliders come out of them, or a paraglider in a mason jar, like a little mini-world that you move in, that you dive into when you fly a paraglider. These are usually real fantasy regions that can be seen in the pictures.
Lu-Glidz, the Lu-Glidz podcast,
Stories from the cosmos of
paragliding. Today with Lara
Simons and
I'm Lucian Haas. The podcast Podz-Glidz carries the subtitle Stories from the Cosmos of Paragliding. In my mind, this cosmos has a wide horizon. It doesn't always have to be the actual flying that takes center stage. I came across my guest for this episode, 161, rather by chance. An announcement for an art exhibition in a gallery in Bamberg appeared in my Instagram feed. The title? Höhenflug, an exhibition about taking off. The cover image? A paraglider painted as a watercolor against a vast mountain backdrop.
That's how I became aware of Lara Simons. Lara is paragliding. She works in this art gallery and loves to paint. And not just any paintings, but also images in which she deals with flying and the feelings experienced during it in an artistic, sometimes surreal way. What can art convey that isn't visible in classic paragliding photos and videos? That's what my conversation with the 35-year-old is about. Along the way, many more mundane things also come up. Lara Simons is a mother of two preschool-aged children. How does she manage to balance family, her artistic work, and flying?
She has already found a fitting label for her work, anyway. Artful Paragliding.
Since you're listening to the podcast, why not become a supporter of Podz-Glidz? It explains how to do that very easily on the Lu-Glidz page in the Gleitschirm-Blog, specifically on the "Support" page.
Lara, many paragliding enthusiasts and paragliders make videos. But you paint paragliding or about paragliding. What do you think you can capture with art that you can't with a camera lens?
Yes, you've hit on the topic perfectly. There are beautiful shots, videos, and photos of paragliding. Because we're always flying in such a great natural setting. But that artistic perspective, which makes something visible that isn't directly visible to the eye, I felt was still missing. And that's what I try to capture in my images. But overall, with paragliding, for example when flying in thermals or soaring, you feel the rising air while paragliding and hear it in the variometer, but you don't actually see it. At least not at first glance. With some practice, you can then see it, for example, on the ground or in the trees.
But this element we move in isn't really visible. And yeah, I try to capture those emotions and the invisible in my art.
How do your motifs come about? Do you always paint something you've already seen while flying in real life? Or are they all actually fantasies? Fantasy motifs that, of course, have something to do with flying.
Yes, they are fantasy motifs. Themes that have built up inside me. And some themes keep coming up, like a girl or a woman blowing soap bubbles. But paragliders come out of that too. So, paragliders flying in the air. Like nature blowing against a gust of wind. So, painting that image directly. Expressing that kind of creative idea behind it. Or painting a paraglider in a mason jar. Like a little mini-world you move in, that you dive into when you're paragliding.
Those kinds of ideas come to me over time when I think about them. Or they just pop into my head spontaneously. And then I want to paint them. These are usually really fantasy realms, imaginary regions, that you can see in the pictures.
Are those the kinds of motifs that come to you when you're not flying? Like, when you're at home, thinking "I'd love to fly again," and then a great image comes to you? Or are there some motifs that come to you while you're actually flying, and you say, "I want to put that into a painting once I'm back on the ground"?
Hmm. Well, when I'm flying, I find the special thing is that you're really in that moment, just to merge with the nature around you, so to speak, and use the lift. I don't actually think specifically, "I have to paint this," at that moment. But afterwards, when I reflect on it and process the experiences, that's when I get ideas. But basically, for me, it's this painting of paragliding. It started when my second child was born. My kids were two and zero years old during the Corona period. And I was very far away from flying then and had a great longing for it.
And that's exactly how it came about.
Which feelings from flying, or about flying, can be expressed particularly well in art? The
A connection with nature, a kind of transcendence. So, with the art, like how I paint paragliding. Or I do other types of art too. That's maybe just my way of seeing the world. Exactly.
How would you describe your painting style? I mean, since this is a podcast, people don't have an image in front of them right now. What would you say if someone asked, "Describe to me, how do you paint?" How would you describe that?
So, I would place myself in the urban art scene. So, a bit more modern and creative in terms of expression. And also incorporating surrealism. It's not about painting from a perspective that's natural and realistic like a photo. It's about creative aspects. That
You've already mentioned the thing with the soap bubbles in front of the mouth. I saw another picture of yours. It shows paragliders circling over a coffee cup, where the warm air rises above it. Another picture. That one is actually written very figuratively—a classic paraglider in front of mountains. But you've colored it in such a way that the colors of the paraglider canopy bleed into each other. Like, I think that was it too, the whole thing bleeds like a watercolor. And that gives it a different artistic aspect. Is that something where you also say, I actually want to break the natural boundaries of paragliding in some way with art?
Yes, exactly. I think that's a really important perspective that doesn't quite come across in normal photos and videos. It's like adding another dimension to it.
Do you ever dream about flying?
Yes, I do. Especially when you fly often. You also dream about flying. Exactly, but my dreams are actually rather realistic. Like taking off, landing, flying.
So, there aren't any typical dream images or sequences that show up in your art then?
No, exactly. They're more like spontaneous ideas and reflections, basically in the waking state. How one could express it, the feeling behind it, what I want to represent with the image.
What does that mean? What does flying mean to you? Or what does it give you, besides the artistic motif, perhaps?
For me, flying means that you basically let go of and forget your "I-state" and become one with nature. And I think only when you do that do you have the possibility to, for example, fly cross-country or something like that. If you're very head-based, you can't use nature as well. Or find the winch to move through nature and also gain safety. And I find that a very special state. So, in my opinion, you're most especially present in that moment when paragliding.
Is there something similar when you're not paragliding but painting? Like, is there a similar state where you enter a flow, or whatever you want to call it, where you say, "Right now while painting, I'm also in that moment and there's really only the picture and me?"
Yes, exactly. I also think that if you're not fully there in the moment of painting, you don't manage to express it properly, let go a bit, and dare to do certain things. And I think that's not just a connecting aspect, but also the aspect of courage, for example. Like with paragliding. Sometimes you might have certain fears and have to push them aside to get a good, safe takeoff or landing and not let yourself freeze up from fear. And it's the same with painting, for example, where you have, let's say, a large canvas and have invested many hours and money into this painting, but the final strokes are somehow still missing.
And that also requires a bit of courage. To make those final strokes and complete the painting.
Would you say that flying also influences your other artworks, where the theme isn't about flying at all?
Yes, I would definitely say that. I've been flying for quite a long time now. So, at eleven years old, I went tandem flying for the first time. Oh wow. So from the LABA. Exactly. But you come,
Sorry for jumping in there for a second. Mhm. You're originally from Cologne. So you were on vacation.
Exactly. I went to the Alps on vacation every year with my parents and before that with my grandparents, so of course I already saw paragliding there. And at eleven years old, I told my mom that I wanted to go paragliding. And then we arranged a tandem flight right away. Yeah. And from then on, I couldn't let it go, yeah. From Cologne, it was very difficult. But at least every summer I could fly, yeah. And
At some point, you decided, "Now I want to be able to fly myself. Now I want to get a license." When was that?
Yes, it was actually pretty clear to me right from the start that I wanted to fly myself one day. You could only start school for that at 14 back then, for sure. And I did do that. Every year I participated in the courses a bit. I'd repeat the basic course every now and then because I was in Cologne for the rest of the year. And flying was somehow quite far away. But at 17, I finally finished my A-license and could fly all by myself. And then, at 19, I also got my B-license.
You said your first flight was at 11. So, which one came first for you as a hobby, sort of speaking—painting or flying?
Hmm. Yes, painting has basically accompanied me since I was a child. I also grew up in a house where there are very many paintings. My great-great-grandfather was a rather well-known artist in Cologne. My grandma had a small studio in the basement where she painted oil paintings. So, my sister studied media design. I grew up with art in itself, but also with the words behind it, with that "art for art's sake" thing. And exactly. And yes, flying has definitely always interested me as a child too. Like when you observe birds or imagine yourself flying.
When you were a kid, when you were already painting, did you already paint paragliding back then? When you say you were already flying at 11? Or was that really only during that time you mentioned, the Corona period, first—no, second child born. And now I want to see my flight scenes. I have to live out my obsession somewhere. I can't do it in the air right now. So I bring it onto the canvas.
Yes, as a child, I also painted pictures of paragliding. At some point, I even posted them. I could look them up again now. So, my mom gave me a notebook where I could stick in photos of myself paragliding and of the tandem flights. I was about eleven years old then. And of course, I painted a lot of paragliders in there as well.
I noticed you when I saw the notification on Insta that you were having an exhibition in Bamberg. And it's titled Höhenflug. And there you show all these images related to paragliding. So basically your paragliding-related art. How does that actually land with the audience? I mean, how do the visitors react to being presented with all these paraglider images?
Well, first of all, I'd say how it all came about—that we have this exhibition. Bamberg isn't exactly a paragliding hotspot. I mean, people do fly here; I think it's a nice area to fly. For cross-country flying in the flatlands or a bit of soaring. It works on the hills too. And there are already quite a few paragliders in this area. But it's just not a paragliding hotspot. We had a wall free in the gallery—you make a plan for the gallery for the spring, what you're offering, so you can show people as early as possible. And we had a wall free. So I suggested showing my paraglider pictures as an exhibition. Not just for paragliders, but also for people who are interested.
Basically, for non-pilots.
And in that context, I also thought about how I could set up this exhibition. So that non-flyers could get a slightly better insight. Not just seeing pictures of paragliding that I've painted. For example, I also have a screen standing there. With loop videos that I've edited together of paragliding. Videos from this region that I made once. And also from the internet.
And I set up one of my beanbags there for that period. Where you can just sit down. So that you can actually sit in a paraglider for a moment. That's nothing special for us paragliders, but for people who are just interested in paragliding, I think it's really a nice thing. To actually be able to touch something like that. And especially, of course, the children found it quite exciting and interesting to sit in a paraglider beanbag for once.
So by "Sitzsack" do you mean harness?
Exactly, yeah.
Why do you call that a seat sack? Yes. Or is that a lying harness? Yes.
Because you
then really has that leg bag on the front, right? No, no,
No. That's right, I have that. No, no. I didn't provide my current lying harness for that. The one I'm using right now. But rather like an old, very old beanbag, so to speak. Exactly.
From learning to fly back then.
What kind of feedback do you get from your visitors? Do you believe that art can really bring people closer to the experience of flying?
Yes, exactly. That's basically the point behind it—making flying something you can experience. Even for people who go to a gallery in the city. It's about drawing attention to it. Many people, even those born in Bamberg or the surrounding area, didn't even know that you can fly in Bamberg. It's a completely new perspective for many people. Or maybe they've noticed it once or twice, but they haven't had many points of contact. Yet they're interested and would love to go tandem flying sometime. Yes, so it's especially the non-flyers who are interested. And about the new perspective, yeah.
And do you also have paragliders among the visitors?
Yes, luckily, some paragliders came too. Exactly. They are, let's say, more interested in... I also made T-shirt designs. Ones you can nicely wear while flying.
And some... Well, I think some paragliders are also quite tech-savvy.
And they don't have many points of contact with art. For them, the perspective might be a bit strange too. But they're still interested and like to take a look at it.
This exhibition you have, the one you're hanging in your gallery in Bamberg now—do you plan on offering something like that elsewhere as well?
That would be lovely, of course. I saw it as a starting point, really. Showing these pictures to non-flyers and flyers in the area once. And also taking some nice photos of the pictures. They're also available for purchase on our website now. And the T-shirts and so on. You can present that much more nicely that way. Even if you have the whole exhibition in front of you and can take better pictures of it. Also for Instagram and Facebook. It's possible in principle, too—so, for example, flight schools or shops could be happy to display pictures of mine. Now...
How do you make this art? How much time do you actually still get to spend flying?
Yeah, exactly. I don't just do the art, I'm also a mother of two children. They're four and six now. And I'm also an artist and a gallery owner. Not just my own art—that also takes up a lot of time. Ultimately, painting in the evening, for example. But the gallery is also very demanding. It's self-employed work where you have to do a lot of public relations. At the moment, I don't have much time to fly. And of course, I'm sad about that. But I'm sure the time will come soon when I'll have more time to fly again.
But I also think it's important to consider that when you do fly, if you're flying less, there are more uncertainties. So it's very important to keep up with your flying. At least to get to ground handling. Because especially with children, you have a different need for safety. And you should definitely be mindful of flying safely.
Now that you're a mother with two young children—is that something you'd say you're holding back from flying because of them?
So, it is a bit like that. Because they really need me or are very attached to me.
However, it's also a nice time for the kids when they can spend time with my partner, the grandparents, or friends, if I manage to get away to fly. It's a spontaneous decision. Unfortunately, decisions aren't quite as easy to make as they are without kids. You have to clarify beforehand when the weather might be good and who could watch them.
Yes, because of the kids. Yes, mainly because of work and the kids, it just happens sometimes, of course.
Is there also a sense of responsibility where you ask yourself, well, paragliding is a sport with a certain... I'll call it uncertainty, that's always associated with it. And if you were to fall, it can usually hurt more than with some other sports. Is that also something that's in the back of your mind sometimes, where you say, no, I can't do that to my young children? Or can you free yourself from those feelings as a mother and say, no, there's so much positive in it that ultimately benefits my children too, in a way?
Exactly. Yes, you've actually described it very well already. Of course, those thoughts come up, that something could happen quickly. Before I had the kids, I once broke my leg during a takeoff because of a stupid mistake. And so, experiences like that. Was it still on the ground or had you already taken off? Still on the ground. A stronger gust of wind and... yeah, injuries like that also show you how quickly it can happen, that for example, you wouldn't be fully there for the kids anymore and wouldn't be able to perform your job as well for a certain period if you were injured, for instance.
So, it's just about showing yourself how vulnerable you are. And yeah, I think it's really important, if you still have the desire to fly, that it gives you so much that you... yeah, you think about your fears, get clear about them, and very importantly, keep in the back of your mind that flying more doesn't mean more safety. So, you always have to keep making time for it, to actually manage to go flying.
Do your children accompany you when you fly? I mean, not in the air, but do they see you take off? Do they see you land? Have they ever been there with you?
Yes, so they've also been to the launch sites before. It's quite simple. Exactly. My daughter has even flown in a tandem before. She was three at the time, I think. She absolutely wanted to and was really interested.
But you weren't the tandem pilot, you flew as a trio. So you with your little daughter still in the front.
No, no. Well, a friend of mine did tandem flying. Exactly with her. And they know each other very well. So she has a lot of trust in him. And my son is a bit older. He was maybe five then. And he's more into playing with the other kids at the launch site. So it's a cross-country flight - launch site at the Binde. Exactly. So he just doesn't have that much interest in it. But my daughter likes to come along and watch. Even if we're just watching, I actually think it's quite important to look at it together and talk about it, what it gives you, or why I like to fly, to tell the kids about that too. But it's also good when they aren't there sometimes, because when the kids are there,
...to just completely hand over the responsibility for a bit. If the two of them start arguing, for example, which happens quite often at that age, I find it hard to switch off. And I do say, in my opinion, it's really important that you're actually present and in the moment. And that's a bit difficult with arguing children in the background because you feel responsible for them. Yeah.
If you could derive a tip from this for mothers who also have children and love to fly: create that space for yourself, to let the children go in a positive sense, to leave them with someone else, so that you can have that freedom to be able to go flying in complete peace.
Yes, I'd say that's important, yeah. Or maybe just balanced, sometimes one way, sometimes the other, so that the kids also notice what you're doing. Exactly. You
you said not in Bamberg, but people do fly around Bamberg. Where is a good place to fly there?
Yes, well, when I moved here to Bamberg back then, I was told that if I wanted to fly cross-country, I should definitely get the winch certificate. And that's definitely the case. I mean, there are some hills around here where you can fly nicely with a bit of wind, but it's actually quite rare to be able to fly away from there. And if you want to fly cross-country, it's definitely better at the winch. You can reach two good launch sites directly from there, in Hohenpölz and Sigrids, for example. I don't know, that's about 20 to 30 minutes by car from here. Exactly. And there are also some other hills that you can reach nicely with different wind directions.
And how often do you manage to take the time to actually drive out there and say, okay, I have the kids off today, I can actually go on a cross-country flight, maybe even a long one?
So I haven't gone out on the track with the kids yet. I've always ended up flying back. I also have it in the back of my mind that the kids are there and I'm the one putting them to bed, so far. But I don't think that's bad at all, because my perspective isn't necessarily that I have to cover a certain distance, but I just enjoy the flying and the moment of merging with nature. So, this whole state of being while flying and the beautiful view, definitely. Or flying together with friends. And the cross-country flying can come later, when the kids are a bit older.
I definitely enjoyed that too, but that can wait a bit.
Now you also have a partner. Yes. He's a gallery owner, as far as I know. How does he feel about flying?
Yeah, he doesn't fly himself, but he does other sports, like cycling, rowing, and stuff like that.
Yeah, he's actually accompanied me before. I think he even did a tandem as a kid. Exactly, so he knows a bit about what it's like. But he doesn't have that interest in flying himself, but he definitely supports me in it.
But you haven't been able to convince him yet? To say, come on, together we could experience even more in a way and share that too.
Hm, I don't know, I wouldn't even think of that. I feel the same way as with his children, that you just don't pressure someone on whether they should or want to fly or not. I think that can—well, everyone just has to, it has to come from within, whether they want to or not.
Hmm.
If you could wish for something for your own flying, what would it be?
So, I definitely have the wish to be able to fly more in the future—well, I can put that wish off for now—and yeah, just to occasionally go out spontaneously, and after flying, to go to the Alps sometimes, where you can fly very beautifully. And yeah, just to spend more time in the air again. Right now, it's just difficult with the kids and the gallery we're doing together. That's also a bit difficult because we're running it together, of course. But I definitely look positively toward the future. Yeah.
And now back to your paraglider exhibition—well, paraglider art exhibition. Would you say that the paraglider motif will continue to accompany you in your art in the future? Or are these things where you'd say you've done it once as an exhibition, and basically, you're done with it as far as that's concerned?
Hmm.
Yeah, those are things I'd love to execute. I also paint other themes in relation to urban art, transcendence, and surrealism.
I'm definitely working on making some pictures right now. But I keep coming back to the paraglider theme. It's also kind of a way for me to balance things out, painting different perspectives. And ideas just come to me that I want to express in my art. It's
Isn't paragliding, or rather the paraglider itself, a bit artistically boring in the long run? It's always basically the same crescent shape that you're painting there.
Yes, exactly. Well, first of all, you have to feel your way around a bit if you want to paint it. How to represent a paraglider well and the shape, which isn't that simple at all. So if you paint it very simply, it's of course just a crescent. But it already has a certain profile where the light hits it at different angles. And lately, I've also frequently painted paragliders together with birds. And connecting them like that, or like dissolving the paraglider into a galaxy. So I can actually think of enough ways to represent that.
Leading into a galaxy. That's the transcendental. Transcendental then too?
Yes, exactly. Yes, I would say that it's not just about these very solid things around us, but also about representing the subtle, the ethereal, perhaps.
To what extent do you experience something subtle or ethereal while flying?
So, what I particularly like about it is feeling how the paraglider canopy catches the wind. Like, the paraglider as an instrument for perceiving the air. To take it in all around you, where you then feel that on one side—front or back or the other side—the air is rising and carrying you along. I would say that's the transcendental experience involved. And also flying together with birds, using thermals, seeing the winch on the ground and then feeling that in the air or seeing the cloud above you. And the connection of this thermal, this invisible thermal, to that rising air towards this cloud.
How can you best express thermals in art?
So, the image of that coffee cup you mentioned immediately comes to mind when you asked me that. So a coffee cup, if you imagine it, fresh coffee rises, hot air rises, like steam. And I painted paragliders that are basically rising up into that hot air. Yes. There are
Are there things you've come to understand better about paragliding, or understood differently, through your artistic engagement with it?
Yes, and I would also say that maybe my art helps other pilots shift their perspective too, and to really feel into that emotional side. Not just to see the natural images, but also what you feel on the inside while doing it, and to express that in my art.
What is the most important feeling for you when paragliding? Or the most moving feeling, I would say?
The connection with nature is perhaps the most moving feeling, I would say.
The dissolving of the self, so to speak, because you're just completely there in that moment. Perhaps the feeling of safety is particularly important—that you don't feel overwhelmed. And for that, of course, it's really important to have experience with flying. That you don't get overwhelmed by the flying conditions, for instance, whether it's very sporty and gusty or if you're just doing calm flights in the evening or morning.
Do you prefer the calm flights?
Actually, no.
But I think if you haven't flown for a long time, you should definitely start with calmer flights first. Then you can work your way back into flying to feel safe again and get a feel for the glider. That way, you don't have to focus on whether you're even staying in the air, so to speak. And once you have more practice and are more confident, maybe have done a bit of ground handling, then you can do some more sporty flights again. What appeals to me more, though, is exactly feeling the lift. Yes.
For some people, paragliding can sometimes have something to do with fear. I mean, moments of fear that you experience. Have you ever expressed something like that artistically? That would be something you might not actually see on camera. But where you're saying, that's a feeling that you can probably somehow represent in a work of art, which the photo doesn't show.
Yes, that's true. I would definitely say that's part of it. You're right. There are moments of fear when flying that you have to overcome, ideally using the methods you've learned, so that you can react safely in that moment.
I don't think I've depicted that in my art. I've heard—well, I've naturally done some reading and research on making art—that people generally prefer images that express something more positive.
But basically, I could also think about how to represent that artistically. That would then be something that inspires me to make a new painting.
What's your favorite picture of the ones you painted of paragliding?
Hmm, yeah. I'd say the one with the... watercolor of the paraglider flying in front of the mountains, where the canopy of the paraglider merges a bit with the sky, looking somewhat like flames. So the paraglider is red, you mentioned that just now. It's very color-intensive and it's not so confined; instead, the paraglider practically dissolves and blends into the landscape. It shows the wind around it, and I think that's such an expression.
In a way. The blurring and the becoming one with nature are expressed by that.
Exactly, yes.
Lara, thank you so much for your story about art, paragliding, exhibitions, and being a mother. Thank you for taking the time. And I wish you that in the future you can take more time again to be able to fly in peace and with all your enthusiasm. And to be able to make even more beautiful new art out of that as well.
Yes, that's right. Thank you very much for the conversation.
You're very welcome.
In the show notes for this episode on the Gleitschirm-Blog Lu-Glidz, you'll find further links to Lara Simons' art, including a shop where you can also buy her artistically designed T-shirts. If you enjoyed this insight into the artistic side of the paragliding cosmos, then do tell your flying friends about it. And if you know someone who offers you the art of paragliding, then leave me a comment. If you know someone you think could also be an interesting guest on Podz-Glidz at some point, then tell me about them. I'm always looking for interesting conversation partners. Just send an email to lugleitzkontakt at gmail.com. As a freelance journalist, I actually put a lot of time, work, and also costs into Podz-Glidz and Lu-Glidz.
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