Augustin Lesage, (born Aug. 9, 1876 in Saint-Pierre-les-Auchel (Pas-de-Calais) and died Feb. 21, 1954), was a French coal miner who became painter and artist through the help of what he considered to be spirit voices. He was untrained and is considered an outsider artist, part of Art Brut. In 1911, when he was 35, Lesage claimed he heard a voice speak to him from the darkness of the mine and tell him, “One day you will be a painter”. The only contact Lesage had had with the arts at that point in his life was a visit to the Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille museum in Lille during his military service. The voice experience prompted him to explore communication with what he believed was the spirit world, and within a year of his first experience, Lesage was hearing more voices, this time specifically giving him instructions. The voice told him what to paint, what art supplies to buy and where to find them. It was his belief that the voice speaking to him was the spirit of his little sister who had died at the age of3. On purchasing his first canvas, Lesage mistakenly bought one 10 times as large as he had intended. His spirit guides instructed him not to be daunted, but to begin painting. Large canvasses became his chosen format. Lesage went on to develop a unique, highly symmetrical style, drafting detailed patterns and monolithic constructions reminiscent of Egyptian and Oriental architectural forms. Lesage claimed, that he would never have any idea about what he wanted to portray. “I never have an overview of the entire work at any point of the execution. My guides tell me, " I surrender to their impulse". At first Lesage never signed his paintings, and then began to sign them 'Leonardo Da Vinci.' It was only later that he began to add his own signature. ...His work is also categorized as part of the spiritualist movement in art. ...His volume of work is very large. At his death, he left about 800 paintings.... (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustin_Lesage) undefined

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