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Category: Interviews

Motoi Yamamoto

Posted on by nr

NR · WORLD
Published · Online

Feature · Motoi Yamamoto
Words · Nicola Barrett

“Our lives, that we live here now, it is always wrapped up in ephemerality”

Soft white piles of salt weave across the floor in delicate and intricate patterns that fill entire rooms. These transient installations are the result of hours of painstaking work from artist Motoi Yamamoto, for whom these creations are a way to remember his sister, who he lost in 1994 to a brain tumour, and his wife, who passed away in 2016 due to breast cancer.

Yamamoto states that he “keeps creating so that I will not forget memories of my family.” He considers the long hours he spends on each artwork as a way to help him to retain those memories. “I look for a convincing form of acceptance to come to terms with the parting of ways.”

On the last day of each exhibition, Yamamoto invites the public to help him destroy the artwork, gather up the piles of salt, and then return them to the sea. The cyclical nature of this act is inherently spiritual and references the cultural use of salt in Japanese traditions such as funerals. NR Magazine spoke to the artist about his practice.

I’ve noticed that you use a fine white seas salt to create your works, have you ever considered using other types of salt like pink rock salt which typically has larger crystals? 

I’ve only used it once in the past. In 2011, I used pink Himalayan rock salt in a large-scale solo exhibition in a museum. It was a work that looks like a Japanese rock garden. But one of the major reasons I use salt is its transparent whiteness and beauty as a crystal, so I think I will continue to use salt that looks white in the future.

Do you consider the process behind your work as a form of therapy that can help you work through and deal with the trauma of personal loss? 

The reason why I make art is to realise the farewell to the precious persons in a convincing way. I keep making art so that I don’t forget memories of those precious people.

“I see my work as ‘a mechanism to fight against the self-defence instinct of oblivion’.”

Salt has a particularly traditional and spiritual significance in Japanese culture, but also in many other cultures and practices around the world. What do you think it is about salt that makes it a globally significant and spiritual substance? 

Salt is a food necessary to support people’s lives. It is familiar but takes a considerable amount of time and effort to collect, which makes it both rare and essential. Another major advantage of salt is that food can be preserved and stored for a long time by salting. These are important functions of salt that support our life.

You have spoken about how you spend much of your time raising your daughter and that you want your work to look to the future. Do you involve your daughter in your art practice and does her view of the world offer you inspiration for your work? 

Basically, making art is a means to solve my own problems. But as she grew up, I sort of adopted changes in her will and mind and opened up opportunities to think about my work together with her. For example, one of the major reasons why I use blue as the underlying part of my work comes from the words my wife spoke before she died, but I asked my daughter about how bright and vivid the blue colour should be, and I decided to use the colour she chose for the work I am going to show this fall.

Both the process you use to create your works and then the returning of the salt to the sea when the installation is over, have an element of ritual to them. Do you think these acts could be considered a form of performance art? 

Certainly, there are performance elements in “public production” and “project to return to the sea”. However, it only looks like a performance as a result if you try to categorise it. It’s not my intention to establish it as a performance.

The patterns that make up your work are very organic in their form, is there a particular reason behind this? How do you plan out the designs?

The labyrinth-like complex shape was originally triggered by the winding form of the brain as my sister died of a brain tumour. And labyrinths have a meaning of rebirth. I began to draw the swirling works “Floating Garden” because the form of a vortex has a similar meaning to that of a labyrinth, mainly in East Asia.

What was the most challenging installation you worked on and why? How did you overcome these challenges? 

One of the most difficult works was a solo exhibition at a church in Cologne in 2010 in cooperation with MIKO SATO GALLERY. From 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., I worked more than 14 hours a day. Because I decided that the area originally planned was not enough to face the majestic space, it was necessary to take far more time than initially planned. With the help of the gallerist, the director, and many others, I managed to create a very satisfying work. The time I spent in Cologne is my treasure.

There is an ephemeral nature to both your completed artworks and the medium you use to create them. Do you think that nature is something that originally drew you to creating art in this way?

Since my sister and wife passed away at a young age, I always spend a finite time, permanently conscious of death. Even while I’m answering your question I am using my limited lifetime. There is no doubt that it is a very precious and limited time. Our lives, that we live here now, it is always wrapped up in ephemerality.

What advice would you give young creatives who want to create installations but perhaps don’t have the space or the resources to do so? 

After my wife died, I cancelled all my work to rebuild my life with my daughter. And I printed out hundreds of photos of my memories with my wife and put them on the wall of my room. That’s when I became suddenly aware that creating an installation and putting photos on the wall are equivalent to me.

My aim is to remember people who are precious to me, and I want to make sure that I never lose sight of the fact that creating installations with salt is just a means to get closer to that aim.

What projects are you working on at the moment and what plans do you have for the future? 

This year I am working on a new project. The Oku-Noto International Art Festival is a big challenge. Create huge installations in what was once a nursery. It is a plan to combine an area that uses a large amount of salt with an area drawn with paint. I’ll paint the walls, ceilings and floors of the nursery with the light blue colour that my daughter chose.

From next year onwards, I would like to realise exhibitions overseas again, for example in Germany, France and other countries.

Collectif Scale

Posted on by nr

NR · WORLD
Published · Online

Feature · Collectif Scale
Words · Nicola Barrett

“We don’t have the pretense to guide people younger than us, because we can also learn a lot from a new generation, born « connected »”

Rods of light twirl and twist, a line of hula hoops loop around each other in a mesmerisingly technical dance, a gallery space is transformed into a kinetic universe of projected images, all to hypnotic soundtracks of electronic and classical music. Collectif Scale is a group of artists and technicians based in Paris who pool their respective knowledge and experience to create cutting-edge augmented installations. Since their beginning, they have “questioned the links between music and the visual, light and architectural design, entertainment and contemporary art, nature and the future, man and machine.” They seek to provide the answers to these questions through their installations. NR Magazine spoke to the collective about their practice.

Your CODA installation has been described as ‘the ballets of robots’. How do you feel about this description and do you think it’s accurate. 

The starting point of CODA was to work around with the idea of a choreograph of lights and create a piece like a dance show or a ballet, where we would replace the body of dancers with robots and light. But even if many people see in CODA a reference to pop-culture, such as Star Wars or video games, our first idea was to produce a ballet of lights, more than a ballet of robots.

You state the collective does not individually define themselves as artists. What do you define yourself as?

Scale is just the pseudo of a visual designer and this designer happens to be a collective of friends.  As we produce different kinds of installations, from scenic scenography for live shows to pieces for art exhibitions, we don’t like to describe ourselves as artists but prefer to consider ourselves as creative technicians or just scenographers.

You have said that the current health crisis has complicated presenting to the public. Would you consider making outdoor installations? 

Since the crisis, most of the festivals or productions try to match with some new rules (outdoor exhibition, outdoor festival, etc…) In order to continue showing installations, we have just finished our first outdoor and waterproof installation. We also have decided that our future installations must be outdoor compatible in any case.

Do you draw inspiration from other artists or creatives when conceptualising your work? 

Not really. Most of the artists and collectives are connected, like us, to these social networks, so we can see what is produced all around the small world of new media art. When we are looking for a new idea, in general, as much as possible, we try to imagine something that has never been produced. In the end, we can say that the work of the others allow us to create new things because we don’t want to reproduce something existing.

What was the most difficult project you worked on, what are some of the challenges you faced and how did you overcome them? 

CODA was probably the most challenging project because it was our first project using motors. After 10 years of using video and LEDs, it was quite difficult to appropriate a new medium. Using motors, bots and mechanics involved a lot of physical constraints (torques, gravity, collisions, kinetic, etc..) We had to work and learn a lot to produce CODA and be able to control robotic arms in real-time and on stage. It reminded us of when we were in school. You open a book, you read, you learn, you try, you experiment, etc…

In the end, CODA is a perfect synthesis of the last 10 years of learning and experimenting. Even if we had the idea 3 years ago, we could never have produced it before, because of our lack of skill and the accessibility to those robotic technologies. We are happy because it really marks the end of a period and the start of something new and very exciting. CODA is maybe our best cocktail of poetry and technology.

You have said it is possible to live with technology but not nature. Are there particular patterns or structures in nature that you reference in your work? 

When you’re using robotic arms like CODA, it’s a reference to nature because a robotic arm is a bad copy of the human body’s mechanics. Beyond this idea, we think that nature is, in any case, very inspiring. From an artistic point of view, nature always produces the most beautiful things one can see: a dancer will always be more beautiful than a robot, an eclipse will always be more impressive than a projector.  From a technical point of view,  physics, mathematics and sciences are there to explain and decode to us how nature works, because nature is always more advanced than human knowledge. We feel it’s natural to draw inspiration from nature more than other artists, and also there’s no problem with copyright.

You mention the group’s love of video games and that there is a level of interactivity between your work and the public. Do you have any plans to create fully interactive, game-like works in the future? 

For many years, we’ve talked about the idea to produce an art piece that looks like a game, including levels, gameplay, etc… We still haven’t found the right idea but we’re working on it. More than video games, we are also very inspired by roller coasters and amusement parks. It would be a dream to customise a roller coaster, to make it interactive and for it to become an art installation.

What was the most exciting project you worked on as a collective and why? 

In the beginning, each new project seemed more exciting than the previous one haha. It’s only after several months that we realise if that one project was really exciting or not. The most exciting one was probably when La Gaité Lyrique, a famous place for digital art in Paris, asked for us to produce an entire exhibition, our first one, in 2014.

Do you have any advice for young creatives looking to create ‘augmented art’? 

We are still young ;). We don’t have the pretense to guide people younger than us, because we can also learn a lot from a new generation, born « connected ».

Are you working on any projects at the moment and do you have anything planned for the future? 

We have just finished a new installation the last week. The tours, festivals and exhibitions seem to be starting again in few weeks so we will probably be on the road once more, and will try to show something in real life.

Daab Design

Posted on by nr

NR · WORLD
Published · Online

Feature · Studio DAAB Design
Words · Nicola Barrett

“An interesting part of our work is extracting from the client what they think normality is”

London architecture studio Daab Design is known for using ‘collaboration, inclusivity and craftsmanship’ to create the best spaces for their clients. They work on a range of projects, from small scale restorations to larger community-based infrastructure designs. NR Magazine reached out to speak to co-founders Dennis Austin and Anaïs Bléhaut about their practice. Dennis was trained in NYC and has 30 years experience designing award-winning projects in Europe and North America. Anaïs was trained in Paris and Rome and has 20 years of experience designing award-winning projects in Europe and North America. 

You have said your work reflects the cities you have lived in and the cultures you love. How does people’s approach to living spaces and housing differ from city to city and culture to culture, and how is that then translated into your work practice? 

Anaïs: I don’t think I can generalise how people in different countries live. With residential work, everybody lives differently. An interesting part of our work is extracting from the client what they think normality is. Often they will tell you to do the kitchen the normal way, but there is no normal way. You practice architecture differently in France and the UK. In France, a small office can do very large buildings, because the contractors are responsible for large amounts of the technical design, whereas in the UK the architects deliver much more details. 

Dennis: In the UK the planning policies have a stifling influence whereas in France it’s very much that there’s a strong concept which is then measured against what the policy suggests. Those differences have changed us as practising architects for the better. 

Is it often the case with older buildings, such as Unearthed Vault and Guild, that they have all suffered from ‘unsympathetic alteration’ which hide their original charm and craftsmanship? If so why do you think that is a common occurrence? 

Anaïs: It is often the case, yes, and there are different reasons for that. The first is that conservation put into law is a relatively new thing. There was an aspiration for conservation since the end of the 19th century but it was some time before it became law. The other reason that now the London housing prices are so high, interesting buildings like the Georgians, are often used as offices. Offices owners tend to not embrace ownership the same way as family homeowners do. The change of use from residential to offices is quite detrimental because the offices just want the building to be compliant and it’s not done sympathetically. 

Dennis: And the love and the charm of the existing building is at odds with its use as an office. What’s interesting now post-pandemic, is that we are beginning to consider 1970’s office buildings in the centre of the city and look to turn them into housing. It’s a whole other challenge. How do we bring daylight into those buildings? How do we retrofit? What is the approach? We have to really dissect these spaces architecturally. 

Do you think this change from offices into housing is going to affect housing prices in bigger cities? 

Dennis: It will not be the panacea where all of a sudden we’ve got this great selection of housing at all different price ranges and everyone is going to be comfortable. It will begin to change the perception and the uses. A great example is downtown Manhattan where, twenty years ago, there was a shift from office spaces into housing. It was an economic driver back then because they weren’t getting the rent from these offices. They took this buildings stock and then appropriated a new use. 

Anaïs: I think it could be a good case study to see how Downtown and the Wall Street area have been converting these offices into very successful flats. The conversion is quite interesting. The system is close to our micro house community. I think it can give some help to solve the housing crisis in London. 

I imagine there’s a lot of technical challenges when it comes to converting offices into housing?

Dennis: Yes. The biggest challenge will be natural light, how do we bring as much natural light as we need and there are ways of doing that.

Anaïs: Office building floor plans can be quite deep, with no natural light.

Dennis: But structural and service issues are less of a key problem. As soon as you start taking the building stock and getting operable windows you’re going to change everything. You will change how people perceive the space. You’re going to improve peoples health and wellbeing. Those buildings then have a natural network of infrastructure at their doorstep, whether it’s public transport, museums, culture, historic sites. If you imagine central London and all of a sudden a third of say the Leadenhall Building becomes residential, it would be quite interesting. 

With Unearthed Vault you spoke of the importance of bringing light into the space. Do you think that lack of good light is a common issue in housing in cities like London? What changes, small or big, can people make to improve that in their own living spaces?

Anaïs: Yes in the case of these Georgian houses and central London houses. It’s a bit different when you go outside that area, I’m always actually quite impressed by the small estates in the suburbs of London and how they still have a lot of natural light. 

When I worked on Vault I was impressed by the original Georgian design for the lower ground floor. It was quite amazing how they have an almost fully glazed wall in the rear kitchen area where household staff were working hard and needed natural light. They also had light wells on the ceiling to get as much natural light as possible, so they don’t spend a lot of money on candles and make the most of the day. 

The problem again is the price of the property, because people tend to look for every opportunity of gaining more internal space. These light wells which are so precious for natural light are often covered to make more internal space. The first day we went to Vault I just couldn’t orientate myself in this basement, it was horrible. As soon as we demolished coverings on the light wells, suddenly you could read the building. I mean the pictures speak for themselves, it was made with zero lighting, just natural light, and it’s beautiful. People realised how much more you gain from the quality of space on the property, rather than trying to gain one square meter of prime location.

I noticed that both in Vault and Guild the use of rich, bold and often quite dark colours on the walls. Is that a trend in interior design at the moment and if so is it here to stay? 

Anaïs: With these two projects, when we peeled back and stripped down the paint on woodwork we found 260 years of paint in different layers. A trend for a group of people or a society is actually reflecting the society itself. You could almost date the paint by its colour by what was a trend at the time and the Georgian trend was very interesting. Today people seem to enjoy almost the similar tones as the original Georgians did. It makes the space very vibrant because you embrace the architecture by using these tones. What’s good is you don’t damage anything if you use the right paint, so there’s nothing wrong with making the home your home with the paint you like. We choose colours that we felt were very Georgian but we incorporated in the original colour 200 years of fading. The red we chose for Guild at the time would have been a much more primary colour. When you incorporate the ageing of the colour, subconsciously you read the years as well. 

What were the most interesting colours you saw?

Anaïs: I’m always fascinated by the original Georgian chocolate brown colour. I’m less impressed with the layers of off-white or cream which flatten everything. It makes everything so dull I think. We found some black on some of the woodwork, which I wasn’t expecting but it looked very strong. I think that’s part of the reason in Guild we made the railing colour close to black. We used the colour reference called “Railings” from Farrow and Ball

When you renovate places do you feel like an archaeologist, peeling back the layers of time? 

Anaïs: Absolutely you feel like an archaeologist, and you discover things. With Guild again the hallways were covered in vinyl tiles. We took them off quite quickly but we couldn’t tell if we had concrete below, or stone, or what, because the glue was so horrible. It was only after when we cleaned all the glue that we found the most beautiful Portland stone. That moment is amazing.

With Sunnyside Yards you talk about the importance of fostering community by providing public spaces and programs to encourage residents and locals to interact. However, considering how people have become even more used to isolation due to the current pandemic, do you think that simply providing these spaces and programs is enough to cultivate community in these kinds of housing hubs? 

Dennis: Just providing space and suggesting usage, no. You need the backing of the community and residents. You need the will to create spaces where people will get together and foster well being. On the other hand, if the architecture doesn’t permit that, then you haven’t permitted that ability for people to take ownership of their own spaces. For years we were talking about how spaces are too small. We design everything down to the square centimetre and it’s cost-driven. But that doesn’t work, we need to provide housing that has greater access to exterior spaces. Not just a single tack on balcony but also communal exterior spaces

I think some really successful projects now are making landings at floor level where not only can you store your baby buggy but there are benches where you can sit you can chat with your neighbour. So the idea of saying ‘in this space people will feel good, this will be a wellbeing space’ doesn’t work. I think people now, post-pandemic, are thinking about how we can collectively figure out what to do with these spaces. We are no longer waiting for the governments to tell us this. And with Sunnyside, that’s what we tried to do, by creating these second-level podiums with these collective spaces again at lift landings. As you leave the lift you have access to an outside terrace, before you get into the corridor leading to your flat. 

When you work, how you keep in mind the importance of providing these spaces for fostering community and include that in your design? 

Dennis: Understanding how we live. Also, going back to your first question, by living and working in different countries.

Anaïs: But also it needs to come earlier from the community itself and community engagement during the project. Because the community have different needs and different requirements

Dennis: Look at affordable housing in the UK. Up until sixteen months ago, the driver was bicycle storage and bin storage, and that’s not enough anymore. Of course, bins and bikes are important but it has to be about how can a community of thirty-five units build in the ability to work from home. So everyone working in their flat can also have a space where people can get together and have access to independent spaces to work in. 

I’ve noticed a lot of roof space in London is often unused, do you feel like this is a waste of space? 

Dennis: Absolutely, we think it’s critical to promote exterior green space. The use of a roof should allow people to get up, get daylight and enhance views. It should allow you to meet, you should have access to a communal garden up there. There is low lying fruit in wellbeing and that is garden space, whether at ground level or roof. Talking to people, playing in the dirt, and seeing something grow is an amazing answer to feeling good. Plus roofs should also be used for renewable energy, grey-water collection, etc. 

Anaïs: Also a green roof is simply better for insulation, better air cleaning as well. I think also in London the pandemic revealed the underuse of the front garden. All these little front gardens that we used just put bins in, they are now becoming like a prime piece of land. Everybody wants a little chair and coffee place in them. It’s great to see how we can make these spaces work harder. 

With Micro/Macro you talk about rethinking communal spaces. Do you find that there is a big demand for micro-units/single person studios in cities like London where young workers are often forced to share their living spaces with strangers due to the cost of living? And how exactly will Micro/Macro tackle issues like these? 

Dennis: It’s interesting because neither of us is from the UK. There is such a rich culture of young professionals sharing flats here. In New York that isn’t the case as much and in Paris even less so. You would go to look for a chamber maid’s flat in Paris under the roofs. A tiny little nine square meters but you would be living alone. In the UK it is very much about coming together, with people you do or don’t know sharing a flat, and it becomes this greater network. I think for us Micro/Macro is about thinking architecturally, not just providing a cheap small flat. We took out in certain aspects like the full kitchen by bringing in a small kitchenette. You don’t need a dishwasher or a washing machine, those become communal uses and functions that you share on the ground floor. In Manhattan, the old laundry rooms were where you got to hear the gossip for the whole building.

Anaïs: That’s where you create bonds and friendships. 

Dennis: It’s about getting a small sleeping unit, I can have a friend over, I can read a book I can do what I need to do in my daily life. But when I’m participating in a communal event, doing my laundry, sharing thoughts, I want to do that with people, who are not necessarily my flatmates but are my community. For Micro/Macro we are very keen on making sure we can design these buildings where retirees are living on the same floor as the twenty-somethings. They can share life experiences and really create the essence of community. So it’s not about small, it’s about eliminating and reducing in your personal flat. What that does is it takes the pressure off your flat and you start organising your stuff a little differently. ‘I do have that quarter or half a cabinet in the laundry room, I will store it there.’ We have just been so used to consuming and consuming and thinking that we need this that and the other at our fingertips but we don’t. 

Are there any new technologies in the industry that you are particularly excited about, specifically in regards to providing sustainable and affordable housing? 

Dennis: I wouldn’t say it’s brand new but off-site prefabrication, often referred to as MMC. They aren’t incredibly modern I grew up in New York, next to a town which was part of a prefabricated housing scheme in 1957 and it was all flat-pack houses.  However, today we are at the cutting edge of prefabrication in housing. I think in terms of sustainability it does it in three broad efficient steps. One is it reduces waste as everything is built in a factory and it centralises deliveries. Secondly is those units built are incredibly well insulated and have amazing airtightness. Plus the quality is better because there’s less margin for error. Thirdly you are getting this incredibly shared benefit of the units together acting in unison, and all profiting from really efficient exterior insulation.

Anaïs: I think one interesting point is it has existed for some time. In Europe, they tried at the time to import these systems, because of all these benefits, but the cultural barriers against this kind of method of construction were so strong, In Europe, people wanted stone houses, and in the UK brick houses.

“It’s only now that we are on the verge of a sustainable and environmental collapse that people realise these tools and methods already exist.”

What was one of the most challenging projects you have worked on as a company and why? How did you overcome these challenges? 

Dennis: There’s a project we are working on now called Between the Lines. It’s a master plan of a neighbourhood here in Battersea and it’s an area that was formed by the rail companies of the mid 19th century. That infrastructure created huge barriers to connectivity between communities in Battersea and Lambeth. 

Anaïs: This railway company had a green light to take the land they wanted. So there is a lot of residual corners and no-mans-land amalgamated in an area that is quite close to where we work. 

Dennis: And the challenge is to communicate to people, the authorities, some of the landowners the chance of connectivity is there. We need to stop looking at these sites as giants and look at them at a pedestrian level. It’s all these series of brick arches and infrastructure that is very penetrable. So the challenge is communicating the worth and the value of this land.

Anaïs: It’s a complex site it’s quite hard to grasp. There’s a huge opportunity there. It’s an iceberg between Nine Elms and Battersea it’s fascinating.

Any other places that were interesting challenges? 

Dennis: Yes, we are working with Southwark council on affordable housing. There is a policy of looking at existing estates and trying to make them a bit more efficient at providing additional homes. So they are looking at taking out garages and filling in some missing teeth of spaces. Loads of great challenges, the scale though, unfortunately, is too small it needs to be bolstered up. 

Anaïs: For me, the great challenge that I enjoy very much at the moment is retrofitting services in listed buildings. There are so many options and people now are contemplating the fact that we have to be able to do something in these buildings. And there are different options, a mix between traditional design and really high tech elements. This is challenging, it’s case by case but it’s great.

What advice would you give to you creatives looking to get started in this field? 

Anaïs: We like working with students we have always an LSA student in the office and we enjoy mentoring very much.

Dennis: I think that the advice is to bolster your curiosity 

Anaïs: Travel, work in different cities. That brought us so much. 

Dennis: And if possible work in different languages and carry a sketchbook.

Anaïs: Draw draw draw. Meet people, talk to people, talk to architects. 

Dennis: The value of shared experiences and understanding what people have been through, is how major projects have been developed. It’s about piquing people’s curiosity. 

What projects are you working on currently and what do you have planned for the future? 

Dennis: Between the Lines is the real current project that’s quite interesting

Anaïs: Also some listed buildings and conservation areas. 

Dennis: And the Homegrown Plus initiative that we are working on with Neil Pinder. It’s a platform to provide access for architecture students and young architects who are from non-traditional and traditional backgrounds. People of all ethnicities and backgrounds working through university. How can we, as an office, begin to disseminate some of our knowledge and our experiences to this greater network? Homegrown Plus is about bolstering access to a whole population who have been historically denied access to the study of architecture 

Anything else you’d like to add?

Dennis: I think for us. we are very much a small-large practice. We opened our office after having worked for thirty years or so and it’s about bringing our experience to our own work. We are doing that because the joy of being in control of your own destiny is just amazing. We feel we can offer more and give back to society within our own practice than working with bigger names.

Anaïs: And we still feel that as a small office we are agile enough to integrate larger teams if needed on infrastructure projects. We are really happy to work on infrastructure projects with other architects.

Dennis: As a small practice we do collaborate with larger practices and it’s a cross-pollination of practice experience that is quite interesting 

Anaïs: It keeps you fresh in your thinking and your design. Nothing is taken for granted.  

Credits

Images · DAAB DESIGN
www.daabdesign.co.uk/
Photography · JIM STEPHENSON

Fabian Oefner

Posted on by nr

NR · WORLD
Published · Online

Feature · Fabian Oefner
Words · Nicola Barrett

“discoveries in science and technology have always been a catalyst for the arts”

Destruction and creation go hand in hand in Swiss artist’s Fabian Oefner’s work. Everyday objects are sliced up and then reconstructed in resin or placed between the pages of a book, allowing the viewer to see the secret inner workings of a Nike shoe, a voice recorder, a camera and so on. Sports cars appear to have been caught mid-explosion, with cogs, gears and screws floating in chaotic unison, but are instead the combined product of hours of individual photographs. Drones map out the changes to a glacier over the last hundred years in eerie long exposure photographs. Oefner’s work straddles the so-called divide between art and science highlighting the interconnectivity of the two subjects.

You are most well known for combining science and art in your work, but do you not think that all art requires an element of science and vice versa? 

Absolutely. To be quite honest, I always found it strange to be identified by combining art and science. To me that’s the most natural thing. If you look at the history of art, the combination of art and science has always been there. Da Vinci and Michelangelo’s close studies on the anatomy of the human body allowed them to create their masterful paintings and sculptures, Vermeer’s use of a camera obscura resulted in these marvellous compositions of his, etc. The list goes on and on.

“I believe that discoveries in science and technology have always been a catalyst for the arts.”

How did you decide on the objects you used in Heisenberg, you mentioned that they were all connected to memory but was there any other criteria you used to select them? 

Memory definitely has been the most important deciding factor. But I also have to add that the series is not done yet, those are just the six initial objects. I would love to expand the series to about 12 sculptures. Objects that might be included are typewriters, a violin, the first Mac computer and a Moog synthesizer.

Much of your work requires hours and hours of time to complete. Do you consider the lengthy process part of the work, a kind of performance art as it were? 

That’s an interesting thought…one of my favourite quotes about art is one by Yves Klein who said: “My works are only the ashes of my art” I can relate to that. To me, the art is hidden somewhere in the process. But

“I think to a certain degree that process is manifested in the final sculpture.”

With your exploded car series you had the opportunity to work on a real life-sized car, have you ever considered working with something even bigger? 

I have, yes. I would love to create a Disintegrating image of a Blackbird SR-71, the fastest plane ever created. Since this plane is more than 30 feet long and the few surviving examples are all in museums. So the challenges to create the image are tremendous. But I guess that’s one of the reasons I want to and eventually will create this image.

What’s the most challenging project you have worked on and why? How did you overcome those challenges?

“Timelines”, my work on the changing landscapes in the Alps has been very complex. The technology to create these images is still in very early stages, so you have to be very flexible in adapting to what’s possible and what is not. Also, the environment in which these images were created was a challenge, high up in the mountains, during the night, with wind gusts at 100 km/h and snowfall. At this point, you sometimes question yourself why not choosing something simpler to do.

But in the end, those projects are always the most rewarding, the ones, where it’s just one obstacle after the next. But

“if you persevere and keep that vision of yours in front of you, then eventually you will succeed.”

What advice would you give to young creatives who have an interest in both art and science? 

To believe in their work. That it means something to the world, that you are creating it. And to not look left or right, worrying about whether their work is Instagramable or not. Sooner or later, you will find the right people, that will appreciate what you do.

You consider your practice as a form of modern archaeology and you mentioned finding a note in one of the cameras you deconstructed. Have you ever found anything else like this? 

I cannot think of something tangible right now like the note, but I often wonder about what the story of all those objects is, for example, the cockpit voice recorder. How many parts of the world has it flown over, what conversations between pilots it has recorded. It would be fascinating to know the answer to these questions.

Much of your work involves deconstructing and examining man-made objects, have you ever considered doing the same with forms found in nature? 

No, this is something I haven’t considered for my work. I use a different iconography than objects from nature to convey my ideas.

What was the artwork that you felt the most connection to and excited you the most? Why that one in particular? 

It’s the series of sculptures I am working on now, which are called “Momentum”. The objects will be published later this year. 6 sculptures that depict a moment in time in three dimensions. I loved them so much because they are taking everything I learned so far to the next level. I cannot wait to share them with you.

Credits

Images · STUDIO OEFNER
https://fabianoefner.com/

Virginia Arcaro

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NR · WORLD
Online

Feature · Virginia Arcaro
Words · Izzy Bilkus

“I learned to rediscover myself, my body and my mind through photography”

Virginia Arcaro is a visual artist whose work spans the realms of painting, collage and photography and explores personal connections with contemporary culture, art and high fashion. Working with the likes of Dior Homme, Acne Studios, Arcaro’s editorials integrate elements of fashion and art history with her own personal vision. The result is an impressive and authentic body of work that is sleek and carefully considered. Arcaro’s practice draws inspiration from a range of subcultures and the limitless potential of photography as a medium.

NR looks into Arcaro’s influences and creative process across both her personal and editorial work to learn more about their artistic production. 

You have a really interesting body of work that ranges from high fashion to more intimate, personal pieces. What have been some of your favourite photography projects to work on? 

Definitely the projects in which I had the freedom to express myself and my creative vision without many boundaries and limits. And those in which I tried to simultaneously blur and establish the lines between art and fashion.  

How did you start getting into photography? 

Since I was very young, I’ve always had my camera with me. I was constantly shooting. It has always been a passion. On a professional level, I started immediately after graduating from the Academy of Fine Arts, collaborating with my boyfriend at that time, shooting the collections of his brand and also curating the creative direction of every photographic project with him. Soon after, I started working as a backstage photographer during fashion shows in Milan, Paris and London, and at the same time I was shooting editorials for magazines and commercial works for various luxury brands.  

How much does fashion influence your work and creative process? 

Fashion is both a means of expression and a source of inspiration. It definitely affects me a lot, but not so much to overwhelm my creative process. When I started working in fashion, I was quite clueless about how complex the industry was. Working in the field and having had the opportunity to meet and collaborate with so many different people helped me learn a lot. I feel honoured and will forever be grateful to have had the opportunity to document the incredible work of designers I love and admire. 

What has impacted your creative vision the most? 

My background and cultural experiences, music, my love for rebellious youth cultures and subcultures – when they could still be defined as such. And having studied art history for years, I can’t deny that traditions and classical references also played an important role in impacting my vision.  

What people and places do you draw the most inspiration from? 

From authentic people, radically different people, confident outsiders. I’m inspired by any place I have a connection with – a connection that is not only physical but also mental. From all the places I’m sentimentally attached to for some reason. 

How have you managed to stay present and creative during the past year? 

Last year was surreal, but I think it had a positive impact on my life and it helped me a lot on a creative level. My job has always led me to travel continuously, and I’ve always loved traveling in my free time too. I had to learn to stop and be in one place for months, so I had time to recharge, time to reflect and time to develop new creatives projects. I learned to rediscover myself, my body and my mind through photography, immersing myself deeply in the essence of art.

How do you choose your subjects and the people you photograph? 

Each person is unique, and I choose them for different reasons. There’s no rule. I understand immediately when I like a subject. 

Is there a main message you want to say with your more personal photographs, or do you find it’s more of a relaxed and natural process? 

It’s a combination of both. I feel it’s a natural process for me to shoot something with a meaning, or a plurality of meanings. Each image contains messages and symbols that lead to a different dialogue. Interpret as you will. 

Virginia Arcaro’s work has been featured in Dazed Digital, AnOther Magazine, Vogue Paris, Vogue Italia, Vogue UK, Harper’s Bazaar UK, Highsnobiety and more.

Arcaro’s work can be found here virginiaarcaro.com

Bradley Sharpe

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NR · WORLD
Published · Online

Feature · Bradley Sharpe
Words · Nicolò Pablo Venerdì Bettiol

“It has developed, suffered and excelled – all in one breath”

How could one forget the wearable gargantuan mantua tents that, no longer than a year ago, stole the spotlight of fashion?

We are talking about it today, and we’ll definitely be for a while. British designer Bradley Sharpe graduated from Central Saint Martins last summer, and his vision has not skipped a beat since. The visionary creator opened up to NR about the launch of his own brand, his debut collection and the responsibilities descending from being a contemporary designer.

Authenticity remains at the core of his priorities, admits Bradley. Not only are we looking at what we put out to the world, but, most importantly, what we say. A highlight of his process falls onto accountability as well – a gentle reminder that fashion should never be taken with a grain of salt – “It’s not just about you.”, to have a voice, implies responsibilities. Bradley Sharpe: get ready, you will not be bored.

Your graduate collection hit the world with a bang this past year, can you talk us through the inspirations and process behind it?

Working at a sex club to financially support my final year, I became fascinated by its unrestricted public hook up culture. I began looking into the historical aspects of hooking up and became fascinated when I discovered the tales of Molly houses and court events. I wanted to find a way to reinterpret the Mantua – a gown worn by aristocratic women in the 18th century – and, after coming across a tent in a charity shop, I naturally began pursuing its idea of volume.

That said, I’m quite a tactile person. My work is always inspired by a body of experiences or things that I’ve come across naturally… Nothing is ever forced, rather completely authentic. I also really liked the idea of a consumer buying a gown, but still having to literally build it themselves.

What hides inside these tents?

My sleep paralysis.

What inspires and pushes you to create?

I’m privileged to live in London. To be surrounded by relentless creativity which always pushes me to do more.

What has been your greatest achievement so far?

Probably working with some incredible people recently. From Lady Gaga and Tim Walker, to my fantastic and ever inspiring studio team.

Looking back at your experience at Central Saint Martins and Marc Jacobs in New York, how has your view on fashion changed?

This year alone, the industry has changed astronomically. It has developed, suffered and excelled – all in one breath. More than ever, the difference between then and now is that the future of fashion lies within its young designers.

“People are no longer looking towards the successful fashion houses for an opinion, they’re looking towards us”

What is the most valuable lesson you have learnt from it?

To be authentic.

Stepping into the world of fashion during such hard times must have demanded a lot of backbone. How have the first months of your career outside of university been?

It’s been a breath between exciting and manic. I’ve learnt so much by getting things – so – wrong: that is just the process of growing independently. I’m still so blessed to have a small team that’s so committed to the vision.

After my graduation (Ed.), it’s taken me a while to get started again: I am not in any rush to put out my debut collection. St. Martins felt so unnecessarily rushed. I cannot talk about, nor consider sustainability, if you’re going to work yourself or your team like a horse. Good things come at a good time, and I’m comfortable with that.

What are the biggest challenges for a young designer to start up their own brand?

It is probably about getting your head around the construction of a brand, and how to entirely build one from the ground up. Being an adult, configuring a business, it is totally different from being an 18 year old who just wanted to have their own brand. You can be street wise, but still, you have to be smart and make responsible moves. It’s not just about you.

What responsibilities descend from having a voice in contemporary fashion?

You have to be authentic and use your practice as a way to ascend your voice. Popular opinions aren’t necessarily always correct – just do what you want and say what you think.

We are all very excited for what is next to come. What are you working on at the moment?

I’ve been working on my new collection these past few months and it’s finally started to take shape. I cannot wait to share it with you very soon.

Credits

Images · BRADLEY SHARPE
https://www.instagram.com/bradleysharpe/

Fernando Livschitz

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NR · WORLD
Published · Online

Feature · Fernando Livschitz
Words · Nicola Barrett

“Take a camera or computer and do things that motivate you. Do, do, do and do, that’s the way.”

A whale splashes about with its calf in a garden swimming pool, a speed boat spins in circles upon a galaxy of stars, and famous buildings just up and float away. These are just some of the worlds Argentine filmmaker Fernando Livschitz brings to life in his short films. “His stories unfold organically showing the extraordinary as something ordinary and common. Going deeper into reality through the wonder that is in it by creating a charming and mind-boggling mood.”

Indeed, his works are inherently surrealist by nature, incorporating the mundane with the absurd, but there is an inherent youthful playfulness to them that offsets their obvious technical conception. They invoke all the innocent creativity of a young child, who has been set loose in reality and has been given the power to make it their plaything. In doing so they remind us all of the freedom of childhood imagination, unconstrained by adult worries such as gravity or logic.

Livschiz’s films are viral by nature and have been seen by over a hundred million people. He has directed all over the world, winning The Young Directors Award at the Cannes Lions and worked with well-known brands including creating the opening credits for CBS’s The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

How long does it take for you to make each project/video and what’s your artistic process when coming up with ideas for your work? 

It could take one day or months to make a project. there is no logic there.

Usually, I start from a small idea or concept I want to show and then the process can lead in other directions.

Which is your favourite project and why? 

I’m not sure, maybe “Buenos Aires Inception Park”. This project is 10 years old, and it has opened all kind of doors in my career.

You stated that during lockdown you didn’t feel very positive because of the current situation, is that what inspired you to make Anywhere Can Happen, which is a very uplifting and positive work. 

Well, I’m not sure if it was the lockdown period. Life is complicated beyond this crazy time. I feel we can see things as different, more positive.

Which was the most difficult project you worked on and how did you overcome the challenges you faced while making it?

Each project has its complications. When I start with a project I’m not sure how I’m going to do it. As I progress, I discover the complications. Sometimes I feel that my work is based on gradually solving the problems that arise.

Is there anyone/anything in particular that you draw inspiration from (ie, literature, films, artists, creators etc) 

Yes, lot’s of artists: Slinkachu, Michel Gondry, David Lynch, Tim Burton, Leandro Erlich, Pablo Rochat, Fubiz, Vimeo Staff Picks, Nowness.

How do you think working on an international level affects the creation of your work? 

I think it affects it in a positive way. The greater the knowledge, the greater the possibilities.

What advice would you give to young creatives looking to work in animation and film? 

Do not wait for things to come from outside. Take a camera or computer and do things that motivate you. Do, do, do and do, that’s the way.

In the BTS of Lost in Motions, I saw your daughter helping you to spray paint the individual pieces you used to create the stop motion. Do you often include her in your creative process? 

Yes!, she has an innocent view of things and life and I love her opinion. She has great ideas.

You have a background in photography and design how did you transition into creating these kinds of works? 

I think in my work, everything is connected. Photography, animation, analogue, digital, design, music. What I do now came from all those backgrounds.

Are you working on any projects at the moment? What can we look forward to seeing from you in the future? 

Yes, I am working on several projects. But shhhhh. I can’t talk about them yet.

Vivien Canadas

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NR · WORLD
Published · Online

Feature · Vivien Canadas
Words · Nicolò Pablo Venerdì Bettiol

“It began as a necessity, and quickly became a FUNdamental step of my process”

To paraphrase Fellini, things are not always what they seem. It is incredible how individuals’ minds can correlate images, objects, colours and shapes which do not originate from the same context. His name is Vivien Canadas, and his latest collection, A sip of fresh air, is an ode to visual culture and its boundless limits.

If I were asked what tortellini and a handbag have in common, I would probably call my grandma, asking the same question. On the other hand, the recent Central Saint Martins MA graduate, might have something to say about it. Taking inspiration from the simplicity of everyday life, the French designer took us on a wonderful journey across his process and peculiar eye for silhouette and shape.

“To show humour, but also recall some kind of old-fashioned elegance” points out Vivien. The collection struck fashion’s preconceived notion of mundanity, and here we are, a second later, witnessing the evolution of a trumpet, into a pair of trousers.

Being able to surprise the world with such a brilliant MA collection, followed by your project in collaboration with Tod’s must have felt as an incredible achievement, congratulations!

Tell us more about your vision and inspiration in the process of making it.

Thank you for your kind words! I’m very glad, my final collection and my Tod’s project caught the eye of NR Magazine. My design reflects my fascination for the ordinary and mundane. Through my research I visually collect artefacts, explore customs and incorporate these elements into my draping process. A trumpet evolves into trousers, a tortellini becomes a bag etc. A playful approach that does not intend to be literal. I aim to create a silhouette that shows humor, but also recalls some kind of old-fashioned elegance.

Part of my draping process for my MA collection was about recreating the movement of a garment caught in a storm. I designed voluminous skirt and dress that were based on a simple circle of fabric. Using such a shape was a direct reference to Christian Dior and his New Look silhouette. Subverting traditional techniques and volumes used in Couture is fundamental in my process.

Your collection, ‘A Sip of Fresh Air’ is an open invitation to escapism, to look at things under a different light. What would you like people to reflect on when looking at it?

In less than a century, humanity has completely transformed its natural habitat by escaping the countryside in favor of the city. A radical mutation that built some form of nostalgia.

My collection is an invitation for a city getaway.

“A moment to reflect on what is ‘modernity’ and how the ideal of countryside life redefines or transforms this concept.”

It is a celebration of the bridge between traditions and Mankind’s – perhaps odd? – progress.

The wind is blowing and taking everything on its way. Full skirts are flying, coats are pushed on the front of the body. “A sip of fresh air” is also about re-iterating and re-thinking our temperamental relationships to the elements.

Tell us more about Tod’s and the ‘Tortellini bag’.

For my project for Tod’s, I decided to explore the Italian food culture and gastronomy. One of the main references was the movie Roma by Fellini. A scene in particular was key to me: It’s evening and people are eating on a restaurant’s terrace.

“A moment of life that depicts with humor, and splendour, the Italian cuisine and its mise-en-scène.”

I was intrigued by the construction of the Tortellini. An emblematic ring-shaped pasta dish that is made from a flattened square dough and stuffing. Following the same construction, I thought of adding Tod’s elegance to the recipe. The result? A funny shoulder handbag in various colours.

Can you talk us through the collaborative aspects of your MA collection?

Fashion is about sharing. It is a human adventure that reaches its fullest when you get to collaborate, interact and create with others. I couldn’t imagine this project to be only about my own exploration. I wanted to incorporate other visions, and give them the space to express themselves. The shoes were designed in collaboration with Baptiste Faure. They are made from recycled Wellingtons, reworked into a pair of shoes, suited for urban life.

Collaborating was also a way to celebrate Daum’s savoir-faire, a crystal company founded not far away from home-town, Remiremont – France – in 1878. Using their unique craftsmanship of casting and colouring crystal, we designed “trompe l’oeil” headpieces. Resembling wet hair, the prosthetics reiterate our temperamental relationship with the elements, but also reflect my desire to build a new bridge between tradition and modernity.

The global circumstances in which you found yourself developing such a high caliber of work must have not been the easiest ones. In what way have you managed to adapt your practice to such a restrictive situation? What have you learned from it? How did you adapt your creative process to it?

Working on these projects was a chance: it forced me to stay resilient and pro-active despite the world situation. The lockdown pushed my process to evolve: more than ever before, I used my own body for my draping experimentations and fittings.

“It began as a necessity, and quickly became a FUNdamental step of my process.”

Things might not go the way you are planning, or you might not have the fabric you wanted: this experience taught me the essential value of being flexible.

Your journey into fashion started long before applying to CSM. Tell us more about your background and training.

Following a Masters degree at Sciences Po, Paris, and after completing a couple of internships, I worked as a junior designer at Maison Margiela for almost two years. Not your typical pathway… I hadn’t formally studied design before commencing the program at Central Saint Martins!

Looking at fashion Today, what are your hopes and concerns?

I hope fashion could go back to a more human scale.

The urge for relevancy in the work we produce has never felt more important than now. What do you have to offer?

As fashion designers, we are not only developing garments, we are creating a world. As a matter of fact, it is essential to take part in the ongoing conversation, and to reflect on the message behind my work. It appeared crucial, within my process, to understand who I am and what I represent, in order to support a progressive message that acknowledges and elevates others, no matter which gender, race, sexuality…

What can we expect to be seeing from you in the near future? Do you have any new projects coming up?

I would love to keep working on my own practice, and see where this takes me.

Credits

Images · VIVIEN CANADAS
https://www.instagram.com/viviencanadas/

Reuben Selby

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NR · WORLD
Published · Online

Feature · Reuben Selby
Words · Nicolò Pablo Venerdì Bettiol

“making the industry ‘less worse’ is not enough”

Creative and modelling agency co-founder, fashion designer, sustainability advocate and researcher, set designer and collaborator… These are just a ‘few’ of the many shoes that took Reuben Selby’s work under the spotlight… Sounds a lot? Forget it. The designer seems to be only at the very first steps of a very promising career.

With Maisie Williams being his number one collaborator and girlfriend, the creative duo is actively challenging fashion normativity, making a change one step at a time.

When I first met Reuben and Maisie on a photoshoot set last fall, I remember them talking us through the message and intentions leading the freshly born brand. Today, Selby took a second to explain us the importance of collaboration, change and sustainability within his vision.

“Introspection is at the heart of the brand” suggests the designer, outlining the hopes and passions intertwined within his creations. What we are witnessing, it’s an inspiring act of love for creation, an invitation for reconsideration of our true identity.

Following a successful opening of FASHION FOR GOOD’s “GROW” exhibition, and an upcoming show planned to take place at the next LFW, we couldn’t be more excited to see what the future of the brand holds.

Where does your passion for fashion come from? What pushed you to start up your own brand?

My passion for fashion comes from my desire to create and bring art into the world. I wasn’t surrounded by fashion growing up, but I’ve always been fascinated by the idea of storytelling and building new worlds.

“I see fashion as one of many art forms that I use to express myself, which is also the true driving force behind my brand.”

For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to run my own brand and curate shows.

What have been the greatest challenges throughout this past year?

Navigating the impact of Covid and Brexit on the fashion industry. I want the brand to be focused on fashion shows and collaborative projects more than bringing garments into production; however, the small runs we’ve planned to bring out have been massively disrupted.

What inspires you? What kept you pushing?

Striving for something bigger than myself is what truly inspires me. Creating an artwork that transcends, and connects deeply with an audience.

“I’m inspired to create new perspectives, to encourage people to look internally, in the hope to make the world a better place.”

We loved your latest homage to Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s legendary work. How has the collaboration come together?

Jeanne Claude and Christo’s work has always been a massive inspiration to me as an artist. However, only recently have I been able to come to terms with a deeper meaning to their work. Their pursuit of creating self-funded art on a grand scale is as equally, as admirable, of the work itself. The vision, the determination and drive resonate deeply within me: they reinforce the importance of being patient, reminding me how powerful an everlasting image can be.

You recently took part in FASHION FOR GOOD’s “GROW” exhibition in Amsterdam. Tell us more about your collaboration with Infinited Fiber.

Another core pillar of the brand is sustainability. Beginning with the brand’s conception, we felt responsible for building it the most ethical way possible. For our debut collection, we put a lot of work into the research and sourcing for partners to collaborate with. We were so inspired when we found Infinited Fibre: we thought of it as a fantastic opportunity to tell their story, and highlight their amazing work. Infinited fibre has a technology that turns cellulose-rich waste – a discard that would otherwise be landfilled or burnt into something precious – a 100% circular premium textile fibre. It reduces the world’s reliance on materials. We used the fibre for the cargoes and shirting in the collection.

The rumor has it we shall see a new collection coming up soon. Do you want to talk us through the inspiration behind it?

This June, we will be presenting our first show in London during LFW. I’m so excited for this project as I will be going deep into my cultural roots and my connection to the city. We’ve been working on this show solidly for seven months, compared to the two months that we spent on a daily show in Paris. We are taking things to a whole new level, and this will be the first time people get to see what our creative team is capable of. There will be a lot of raw energy and excitement, and I can’t wait for people to absorb it.

What statement lays at the core of your brand?

Introspection is at the heart of the brand. We often say we created the brand for introverts. To feel comfortable, without having to stand out or identify. The brand is the catalyst for self-expression: it aims to create an image that builds confidence, to push individuals to stay true to themselves.

Do you believe in change? What are your hopes for the future of fashion?

I 100% believe in change, but I also think that change is not easy, and perhaps, it is sometimes not welcomed. For change to happen, it has to be approached systematically, we have to realise how things are intertwined first. We need more people coming together, collaborating, and solving challenging problems, rather than performing individually. Also, the focus should project onto the roots of the problem: making the industry “less worse” is not enough.

Production and consumption must be reduced, which means businesses and people need to reconsider their motivations, in order to ensure an ecological and abundant world in the future.

“It is my deep hope to center fashion around creativity and storytelling, rather than profit and consumption.”

How has Maisie supported you in becoming one of fashion spokesmen?

Maisie is my number one collaborator. She brings so much of the energy and drive that pushes me to create. Maisie has a beautifully contrasting mind to my own, and she constantly questions how things should be done. She broadens my peripheral view when it comes to conceptualising what we’re going to create. I often have such a clear vision and focus, meaning that I’m not looking at the things I’m unaware of.

“To have someone on your side always giving creative energy means you will never create something that isn’t exciting.”

What is next to come for your brand?

My focus for the brand is to do good, and this can take any form. We want to collaborate and create projects that inspire people, and that’s all.

Credits

Images · REUBEN SELBY
https://reubenselby.co/
https://www.instagram.com/reubenselby/

Tame Impala

Posted on by nr

NR Vol. 11 Space & Composition · Spring Summer 2020
Published · Print Page Unnumbered

Feature · Tame Impala
Words · ELLIE BROWN

“I think the energy of being in a place that you’ve never been in before can make your brain think in different ways”

Kevin Parker’s shoot for NR Magazine came merely a few days before Los Angeles was locked down in response to the coronavirus pandemic that has, slowly but surely, turned everything we know on its head. ‘It was great to do something normal, something that I have been doing a lot of in the last few months; doing photoshoots and having fun,’ Kevin explains – now back in his native Perth, WA. ‘It took the attention away from everything that was going on. It was nice to spend three hours, just doing a photoshoot with wicked clothes.’ As the force behind the powerhouse band Tame Impala, Kevin is confident that the band has the resources it needs to weather the blow that the pandemic will have on the music industry; people still listen to his music online, ‘apparently’. When it comes to making music, it’s a well-known fact that Kevin works alone – so in that sense, business continues as usual. Yet, like many other artists who have had to abandon plans for the foreseeable future, the release of Tame Impala’s fourth album, The Slow Rush, in February has been overshadowed by this unprecedented upheaval. The band were due to play a number of shows in the US and Mexico in March, with an Australian tour following in April. ‘We’d spent so long preparing for the tour, and were at this absolute crescendo of getting ready for the shows – and as soon as we had played the first show, it was like, ‘Oh my God, what’s going to happen? For now, the dates have been postponed – which undoubtedly comes as a blow to the Tame Impala fans who have been waiting five years for a new album (though a number of fans turned to punning The Slow Rush’s exploration of ‘time’ in response to Kevin’s announcements of the postponed shows on social media; ‘it’s a slow rush’.) In its entirety, The Slow Rush is an infectiously funky record – and the influence of 70s disco and the current mainstream that has welcomed Kevin into its arms, are clear. Much of the heavy fuzz and reverb found on earlier Tame Impala albums have been slickened and given a shiny polish. Looking into the past may preoccupy some of Kevin’s lyrical reflections on the album, but there’s no reason for why Tame Impala’s sound shouldn’t move forward. It’s somewhat bittersweet that an album that unpicks the strangeness of time should come at a moment when, across the planet, we will have more time to contemplate the past and the future. It’s a heavy weight to place upon the shoulders of The Slow Rush, and if there was any kind of global crisis that was on Kevin’s mind at the time of writing the album, it would have been the climate crisis. Tame Impala partnered with Reverb, an organisation that works with artists to counterbalance the carbon emissions that are created through touring – something Kevin explains as a ‘no brainer’. Touring, especially on the level that the band are, has a huge carbon footprint, and trying to restructure the way world tours have been done for years would be a daunting task for Tame Impala to undertake themselves. But, it’s Tame Impala’s responsibility ‘first and foremost’ to ensure that the band is setting the right example, especially for a band that performs to thousands of people at every show (though, he hopes, the people that listen to Tame Impala are ‘probably not the kind of people going around denying climate change.’) During our Skype call, I ask Kevin about the prerequisites for listening to music; he says he has come to realise that his appreciation of music is shaped by ‘not necessarily the space, but who I was with when I heard it first, or what I was feeling.’ There’s a ‘helplessness’ to this reality; a ‘lack of control, from the songwriter’s point of view’ over how their music will be received. No doubt, Kevin could not have anticipated that The Slow Rush would come at the time it did; all that’s left to do now is listen to the album in solitude and await the moment when the music world comes back to life.

NR Magazine: The Slow Rush was a long time in the making – how do you feel listening to it now that it’s out there? Is it a relief to be done?

Kevin Parker: Absolutely, yeah. It’s funny because the moment I’m finished with the album, and the moment it comes out, I expect this huge sense of relief and a weight off my shoulders , but it never comes. That might just be because I have trouble appreciating things once they’re done; on release day, I didn’t get to enjoy it because I just can’t enjoy these things. I still enjoy the album, but it’s not always easy to enjoy the music when you’re aware of so many other people listening to it for the first time, and invariably judging it. When I look back, I remember thinking to myself, ‘Shit, am I ever going to finish this?’ Now, I am able to appreciate being on the other side of that. I was listening to the album yesterday; if I’m ever on Spotify for whatever reason, I’ll probably slowly make my way to the album and give it a listen – just to see what it sounds like now after a month. (It only came out a month ago, that’s crazy; it feels like a life time ago!)

What were your reasons for making an album that explores the concept of time?

It’s always been something that fascinates me – not time itself as a weird existential force – but the way it affects us. The way you can smell something, you know, if you walk past someone in the street who’s wearing cologne that someone that you were in a relationship with ten years ago was wearing, and you haven’t smelled it since then, it just sends you into an absolute time warp. The way these experiences shape our lives intrigues me. At the same time, I didn’t consciously go about making songs about all these things but, when it comes to an album, the kind of music that I’m making subconsciously informs what I start singing about. Like, when I made Lonerism, the chords and instruments I was using reminded me of times when I felt alone growing up, and so the album ended up being like that. And I feel like The Slow Rush is the same kind of thing, where the music I was making – the rhythms and cords – just made me think about the future, the past and everything in between.

I listened to Innerspeaker again a couple of weeks ago and it transported me back almost ten years back which was, like you say, an emotional time warp. Does the way you listen to your music change with the passage of time, or is the sentiment the same?

Definitely not, no! It’s funny you know, you’re saying about Innerspeaker – it’s the same for me. I hardly ever listen to the album the whole way through, but if I really pay attention to parts of it, it’s crazy because it so clearly reminds me of where I was and what I was feeling. Like for you, it’s kind of crazy; music is crazy how it can do that. I guess the other thing is, listening to Innerspeaker now, it feels like it was someone else. I just hear this naïve kid, not really knowing what he was doing, which is nice because I don’t judge it anymore. I don’t judge it in the way that I do with The Slow Rush. Innerspeaker was so long ago that any of the mistakes, any of the things that are wrong with it, just sound charming and cute, which feels weird to say…

I guess you’re so disconnected from it, with that amount of time passing?

Yeah totally. That’s also good because it finally allows me to listen to it like someone else, not as me – the person who made it. That’s kind of the dream, to be able to listen to your own work. I don’t know how much money I would pay to be able to listen to the songs I’m working on at the time, you know? To be able to listen to the album, as an outsider… I’d give anything to be able to do that, but it’s something that only time can offer.

I’ve seen a few people mention that the cover for The Slow Rush was 3D-animated, but it’s a photograph from Kolmanskop, Namibia, right?

Yeah – I’m not going to lie, I was a little bit disappointed when people asked how I synthesised the image. I was like, ‘Man, I flew half way across the world to take that picture!’

I can see why people don’t believe it’s real. How did you decide on using that as the album cover?

I was a little bit obsessed with abandoned places for a while, and the internet is full of pictures of these abandoned ghost towns; there’s just something so enthralling about them. I mean, probably not coincidentally, it’s like the experience of time passing smacking you in the face. I guess some people find it depressing to look at, but I just see such beauty in it. As soon as I saw that place, I knew that we had to go there. Kolmanskop is like a ghost town in the desert and it’s super windy, so sand just builds up in these amazing ways. What I love about it, is that it looks like liquid – and if you look at a picture, you can’t tell if it took the sand that’s up to the window a matter of minutes or decades to reach that point, you know? You can’t tell which it is and that’s kind of what I love about it.

You’ve previously spoken a lot about how you make music, but how important is the space around you during that process?

It’s important – not that I need to be in a particular place to make music, but I think there’s something about being somewhere new. I think the energy of being in a place that you’ve never been in before can make your brain think in different ways. So, with The Slow Rush, I tried to milk that. I was renting Airbnbs, taking music equipment with me and recording there for a week on my own. There’s this nervous tension about being in someone else’s house…

Though I guess, you got more than what you bargained for when you were staying in Malibu [when the worst wildfire season in California in 2018 ravaged the area]?

Well exactly, yeah. And I’d only been there for one night, and the next morning I just had to go. I had stayed there for a week earlier that month recording, and it’s funny because I think about that space – I started a few songs off this album there, and when I listen to something I think about where I was when I working on it. It takes me a while to realise that that space doesn’t exist anymore; it was completely burned to the ground, it was just rubble. When I listen to a song, or the chorus of a song I wrote there, I remember the colour of the walls; what the door looked like; what it was like leaning out into the backyard. It’s kind of weird to think it just doesn’t exist anymore because, in terms of memory, we never think of a space as not existing, you know? Our minds think of the space we’re in as these permanent places, not something that can just disappear in one day.

It goes without saying that Tame Impala has seen an unprecedented level of success in the past ten years – what’s next for Tame Impala and for you?

That’s a good question; I don’t know. Well, I want to get making music. One of the things I was looking forward to so much with finishing this album was it just being done with. There was so much stuff that I wanted to do, in terms of Tame Impala and not; there were things that I couldn’t do until I made this album. So now, I’m happy to be on the other side of it so I can do the things that seemed wrong before. I have no shortage of things that I want to do now. I’m kind of excited about it – whatever that ends up being.

Credits

Creative Direction · NIMA HABIBZADEH and JADE REMOVILLE
Photo · JJ GEIGER photo assistant AMANI BATURA
Fashion · SHAOJUN CHEN
Grooming · ALEXA HERNANDEZ
Interview · ELLIE BROWN
Special Thanks · Grand Stand HQ

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